Center Mark Williams revealed he still harbors resentment toward the Los Angeles Lakers for voiding a trade that would have sent him to L.A. last season, saying on “The Young Man and the Three” podcast that the reversal left him “hot” and determined to prove a point.
The 7-footer was supposed to join the Lakers from the Charlotte Hornets in exchange for Dalton Knecht, Cam Reddish and draft picks shortly after Los Angeles acquired Luka Doncic in a blockbuster that shipped out Anthony Davis. The agreement collapsed when Williams failed his physical, prompting the Lakers’ medical staff to nix the deal despite the fact he had played the night before against Milwaukee.
“I was excited,” Williams said on the podcast. “Then they told me, ‘It’s done, we’re not going back.’ I was like, ‘Y’all can’t undo the undo?’” Returning to Charlotte for the rest of the season, he added, “Honestly, the rest of the time I was like, ‘Forget y’all.’”
Williams’ frustration peaked when the Lakers appeared on the Hornets’ schedule immediately after the All-Star break. He later tweeted a smiling emoji following Los Angeles’ first-round playoff loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves, a series in which the Lakers were outscored in the paint.
The former lottery pick’s journeyman year continued when Charlotte dealt him to the Phoenix Suns, where he now backs up starting center Deandre Ayton. His lingering grudge underscores how the voided transaction affected both his career path and his feelings toward the Lakers’ organization.
Meanwhile, injuries have forced the Lakers to rely on reserve big man Jaxson Hayes, who recently said the roster must “keep stepping up” until starters return.
Source: Lakers Nation
