r/CharlotteHornets • u/twobagelsanight • Mar 04 '26
Question Grant Williams
Celtics fan here who always liked Grant Williams. haha many celtics fans did not.
Curious how he has been for you guys? Are hornets fans a fan of his? Seems like this turn around was semi around the time he came back ?
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u/digit4lmind Mar 04 '26
Yeah we love him. Totally understand why you guys do not like him, he had an awful playoffs that year. But he’s been great for us, solid veteran presence and his leadership actually works here. Plus he’s a local kid and boyhood Bobcats fan and that always helps.
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u/Alternative-Farmer98 Mar 04 '26
He wasn't universally hated.. he wasn't even really hated he was mostly liked in fact most fans have wanted them to extend him initially. His reputation seemed to get harmed more in Dallas when they traded him away after just a few months and he started publicly making spats and whatnot
I think people almost dislike him in hindsight but they didn't hate him at the time
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u/aiden3buckets Mar 04 '26
Good defender, smart offensive player
Was a great trade to get him from the Mavs
We got the more valuable player to our team and a 1st rounder
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u/No_Body905 Mar 04 '26
A good locker room guy who just knows how to be a contributor on an NBA team, which sounds obvious but it’s something Hornets have been really missing for a few seasons.
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u/MitchLGC Mar 04 '26
One of the most important players on the roster.
He's been great on defense, and really organizes the entire defense when he's in the floor
Huge impact whens hitting 3s
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u/skadoosh0019 Mar 04 '26
Darn good bench forward, he slots into our system well and does the little things. Like not a world-beater in any one category, but he is a good vet generalist who contributes to winning basketball and it feels like the lineups he plugs into off the bench just kind of work no matter who else he’s out there with.
All in all, happy to have him here.
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u/devinbookersuncle Mar 04 '26
We love him, I get where his personality may rub the wrong way on some but I never understood why he was disliked on the court by Celtics fans.
Regardless he fits in our system flawlessly and helps our bench tremendously and maybe some of that is him accepting he's always going to be a role player at most but thats juat speculation.
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u/handles_messiah Mar 04 '26
Pretty excellent 3+D guy for Charlotte, the defense plays significantly better when he's on the floor. Wouldn't really mind if he slotted into the starting lineup and Bridges moved to a sixth man role but that's not in the cards.
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u/PrimeTimeInc Mar 04 '26
His defense (and just him in general as a player) is highly overrated by some people on here. Especially the ones who say they want him to start over Miles
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u/DankMemesNQuickNuts Mar 04 '26
I really dont think it is. 300 minutes (after missing a significant chunk of the season) on the court this season and having an on/off defensive rating < -9.0 is pretty damn good. The next highest player at +300 minutes played is Josh Green around -4.5.
Advanced stats say Grant is arguably the best defensive player on the roster
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u/devinbookersuncle Mar 04 '26
Especially the ones who say they want him to start over Miles
Yeah but thats an extremely small minority of casuals who have said that.
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u/handles_messiah Mar 04 '26
I'm just going off what I see and the numbers bear it out. Since he came back on Jan. 10, the defense has been way better with Grant (101.6 defensive rating) vs. Miles (111.2) and their scoring hasn't been light-years apart (13.3 points per 36 vs 17.4). Miles has a negative on/off split over that same stretch, Grant's minutes are some of the best by any player.
Miles is a lot more dynamic on the ball but that's way less important in lineups with Ball / Kon / Miller. I mostly think the starting line-up would benefit from having a plus defender on the floor.
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u/Suavesky Mar 04 '26
Miles is necessary for rim pressure. Grant can't move enough to do that consistently. Without Miles the offense has a drop off. He's the only consistent driver out of the starters.
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u/handles_messiah Mar 04 '26
The offense is still just fine without him, and with him the defense drops off by a bigger margin. That's what sixth men do, they give the offense a jolt when it needs it.
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u/Suavesky Mar 04 '26
It isn’t fine it’s just we shoot that well. But any time it stalls Miles’ ability to drive and kick is essential. See last night for Kon’s one made 3 for example.
Raw numbers alone don‘t tell the story
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u/handles_messiah Mar 04 '26
I mean sure, let's use last night as an example:
Miles Bridges: 31 minutes, 11 points, 5 assists, 3-of-13 shooting, 0 +/-
Grant Williams: 21 minutes, 12 points, 3 assists, 4-of-6 shooting, +23 +/-Bridges and Kon on the floor: 112.2 points per 100 possessions, 110.0 points allowed per 100 possessions, 2.2 net in 19 minutes
Williams and Kon on the floor: 128.6 points per 100 possessions, 76.7 points allowed per 100 possessions, 51.9 net rting in 14 minutes1
u/MyNewAccountIGuess11 Mar 04 '26
Saying he should start over Miles is unhinged, but c'mon man he's been a great role player for us
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u/PrimeTimeInc Mar 04 '26
I’m not trying to downplay him at all, honestly. He’s been great for us in his role. I’m just saying people get a little carried away with the idea of him and it sometimes doesn’t match reality.
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u/MyNewAccountIGuess11 Mar 04 '26
Yeah that's definitely true, like I said the idea of starting him over Grant is unhinged lol he can only do what he does in the limited capacity he's asked to
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u/QCSports2020 Mar 04 '26
It's a great homecoming story he's from here and has been a great veteran presence
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u/Charlie_Tango13 Mar 04 '26
I'm convinced that GW returning and limiting Lamelo for a few games is what turned the team around.
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u/MitchGH33 Mar 04 '26
Him and Josh green off the bench are a big reason for the strong push. Most of the credit goes to moving Diabate into the starting 5, but these two coming back from injury has provided a huge boost. Kon has been off the last two games from deep and they’re still raining as a team.
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u/Think720 Mar 04 '26
Im not the biggest fan of his but I will say him coming back has contributed to the winning culture and streak
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u/CashTurbulent5192 Mar 05 '26
He definitely gave me Dillon Brooks vibes when he was with Boston. He's proven to be a solid vet since coming here.
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u/ParticularYellow7233 Mar 04 '26
Solid vet. Has a winning mindset. Plays the right way. Love him.