_(cropped).jpg) Williams withJackson State in 2024 | |
| Jackson State Tigers | |
|---|---|
| Title | Head coach |
| League | Southwestern Athletic Conference |
| Personal information | |
| Born | (1982-12-19)December 19, 1982 (age 43) Jackson, Mississippi, U.S. |
| Listed height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) |
| Listed weight | 198 lb (90 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Murrah (Jackson, Mississippi) |
| College | Alabama (2001–2003) |
| NBA draft | 2003: 2nd round, 47th overall pick |
| Drafted by | Utah Jazz |
| Playing career | 2003–2017 |
| Position | Point guard |
| Number | 25, 2, 5, 7, 52 |
| Coaching career | 2018–present |
| Career history | |
Playing | |
| 2003–2004 | Utah Jazz |
| 2004–2008 | Milwaukee Bucks |
| 2008–2011 | Cleveland Cavaliers |
| 2011–2012 | Los Angeles Clippers |
| 2012–2013 | Utah Jazz |
| 2013–2014 | Portland Trail Blazers |
| 2014–2015 | Minnesota Timberwolves |
| 2015 | Charlotte Hornets |
| 2015–2017 | Cleveland Cavaliers |
Coaching | |
| 2018–2020 | Cal State Northridge (assistant) |
| 2020–2022 | Alabama State |
| 2022–present | Jackson State |
| Career highlights | |
| |
| Career NBA statistics | |
| Points | 10,759 (13.2 ppg) |
| Rebounds | 2,264 (2.8 rpg) |
| Assists | 3,990 (4.9 apg) |
Stats at NBA.com  | |
| Stats atBasketball Reference | |
Maurice Williams (born December 19, 1982) is the head men'sbasketball coach atJackson State University and a former professionalbasketball player who played 13 seasons in theNational Basketball Association (NBA). After a successful high school career atMurrah High School inJackson, Mississippi, Williams attended college at theUniversity of Alabama, where he led his team as a freshman to a 27–8 record, and also shared an SEC regular-season championship. After two seasons at Alabama, Williams entered the2003 NBA draft where he was selected with the 47th overall pick by theUtah Jazz. Throughout his career, he has also played for theMilwaukee Bucks,Los Angeles Clippers,Portland Trail Blazers,Minnesota Timberwolves,Charlotte Hornets andCleveland Cavaliers. In2009, Williams was selected as anNBA All-Star. In the2016 NBA Finals, he won his only NBA championship with the Cavaliers. He retired as a player in 2017.
In May 2018, Williams became an assistant coach for theCal State Northridge Matadors men's basketball team. In May 2020, he became the head coach for theAlabama State Hornets basketball team, but stayed for just two seasons before resigning in March 2022. A few days later he was named head coach atJackson State University in his home town, replacingWayne Brent.
Williams attended college at theUniversity of Alabama underMark Gottfried. In 2002 as a freshman, he started every game at point guard. Williams averaged 10.4 points and 4.5 assists per game. His play helped lead the Crimson Tide to a 27–8 record, including a 17–0 home record, and the SEC regular-season championship. Williams and the Crimson Tide entered theNCAA tournament as a No. 2 seed, where they lost to Kent State 71–58 in the second round. Williams led the team in scoring and assists, averaging 16.4 points and 3.8 assists per game for the 2003 season, which ended in a first-round loss in theNCAA tournament to Indiana. He subsequently earned third-team All-SEC.
After two seasons, Williams decided to forgo his final two years at Alabama and declare for the2003 NBA draft.[1]
Williams was selected by theUtah Jazz in the second round, 47th overall of the2003 NBA draft.[2] He averaged 5 points and 1.3 assists for the Jazz in hisrookie season.[3]
On August 8, 2004, theMilwaukee Bucks signed Williams, who was a restricted free agent, to an offer sheet.[4] On August 21, the Jazz decided to not match the Bucks' offer.[5]
Filling in for Bucks' injured starting point guardT. J. Ford, Williams averaged 10.2 points and 6.1 assists during the2004–05 season. In his new role coming off the bench for the up-and-coming Bucks team, he showed a knack for clutch plays, making several game-winning shots in the2005–06 season.[6][7]
In the 2006 off-season, the Bucks traded Ford to theToronto Raptors forpower forwardCharlie Villanueva. This opened up a position in the starting lineup for Williams. In the first 19 games of the2006–07 season, Williams averaged 15.6 points, 5.1 rebounds and 6.2 assists in nearly 35 minutes per game, all career highs.
In a December 20, 2006, Bucks game vs. theMiami Heat, Williams recorded his first careertriple-double with 19 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists.[8] On January 27, 2007, Williams scored 30 points, including making a game-winning shot, and recorded 10 assists during a 107–105 win over theNew York Knicks.[9]
Williams was a free agent in summer 2007, but decided to stay with the Bucks by signing a six-year, $52 million deal.[10][11]
On August 13, 2008, Williams was traded to theCleveland Cavaliers in a three-team, six-player deal involving the Cavaliers, theMilwaukee Bucks and theOklahoma City Thunder that also sent Cleveland'sJoe Smith and Milwaukee'sDesmond Mason to Oklahoma City and sent Cleveland'sDamon Jones and Oklahoma City'sLuke Ridnour andAdrian Griffin to Milwaukee.[12] Upon his arrival, he changed his jersey number to #2 because his traditional #25 was already retired by former CavalierMark Price.
On February 10, 2009, Williams was chosen to replace forwardChris Bosh in the2009 NBA All-Star Game.[13] He was the second alternate choice, afterRay Allen, who replaced an injuredJameer Nelson. On February 11, Williams scored a then-career-high 44 points to go along with 7 assists against thePhoenix Suns.[14]
During the 2008–09 season, Williams helped the Cavaliers reach a league-leading 66–16 record. The team went 39–2 at theQuicken Loans Arena.[15]
After the departure ofLeBron James, Williams became a very vocal member of the Cavaliers. Amidst trade rumors, Mo hinted on his Twitter account that he didn't wish to be traded. He also criticized the events surrounding LeBron's flight from Cleveland and even shot back at insults made to the Cavaliers byMiami Heat guardDwyane Wade.
On November 24, 2010, Williams made his first buzzer beater as a Cavalier, to win the game 83–81 over his former team, the Milwaukee Bucks. It was a 15-foot shot over Brandon Jennings as time expired. He scored a total of 25 points in the game and was the team's leading scorer.[16]
On February 24, 2011, Williams was traded to theLos Angeles Clippers along withJamario Moon in exchange forBaron Davis and a first-round pick, which ended up being the first pick in the2011 NBA draft,Kyrie Irving.[17] With the Clippers, Williams was immediately inserted into the starting lineup to play both guard positions, and was able to raise his averages in points-per-game and field goal percentage.
The following season, the Clippers traded forChris Paul and claimedChauncey Billups off waivers, making Williams the Clippers' new sixth man. He embraced the role and finished eighth in voting forNBA Sixth Man of the Year.[18]
On June 29, 2012, Mo Williams was traded back to the Jazz in a 4 team deal that sentLamar Odom to theLos Angeles Clippers and theUtah Jazz's trade exception to theDallas Mavericks. The Clippers also sent their second-round pickFurkan Aldemir to theHouston Rockets.[19]
On August 8, 2013, Williams signed with thePortland Trail Blazers.[20] On November 23, 2013, in a game against the Warriors, Williams was ejected along with teammateWesley Matthews after getting involved in an altercation. He was subsequently suspended for one game. Williams injured his groin in game two of the Trail Blazers' second round play-off match-up against theSan Antonio Spurs.[21]
On July 30, 2014, Williams signed a one-year, $3.75 million contract with theMinnesota Timberwolves.[22][23] On January 13, 2015, Williams scored a career-high 52 points on 19-of-33 shooting, breaking the franchise single-game scoring record set byKevin Love andCorey Brewer by one point in a 110–102 win over theIndiana Pacers. This was just the third time in Williams' career that he scored more than 40 points in a game.[24] He subsequently earned Western Conference Player of the Week honors for the week of January 12–18.[25]
On February 10, 2015, Williams was traded, along withTroy Daniels and cash considerations, to theCharlotte Hornets in exchange forGary Neal and a2019 second-round draft pick.[26] He made his debut for the Hornets on February 21 against the Oklahoma City Thunder, recording 24 points and 12 assists in a 110–103 loss.[27] Williams continued to play well as he was named Eastern Conference Player of the Week for games played Monday, March 2 through Sunday, March 8. Williams, who led the Hornets to the NBA's only 4–0 record in the week, was previously named Western Conference Player of the Week on January 19 while playing for the Timberwolves, making him the first player to earn the honor in both conferences in the same season since the award was split into two conferences starting with the 2001–02 season. Over the four-game week, Williams averaged 19.5 points and 10.8 assists in 35.5 minutes played, while shooting .429 from the field (24 of 56), .375 from beyond the three-point line (9 of 24) and .913 from the free throw line (21 of 23). The only Eastern Conference player to average double figures in assists, he also posted an assist-to-turnover ratio of 4.78.[28]
On July 10, 2015, Williams signed a two-year, $4.3 million contract with the Cleveland Cavaliers, returning to the franchise for a second stint and reuniting him withLeBron James.[29][30] In his first game for the Cavaliers since 2011, Williams recorded 19 points and 7 assists, filling in for the injuredKyrie Irving as a starter in the team's season-opening loss to the Chicago Bulls on October 27.[31] Over the Cavaliers' first 23 games of the season, Williams played in 20 of them and started in 14. Over that stretch, he averaged 13.0 points and 4.1 assists in 27.6 minutes per game, as he shared the point guard role withMatthew Dellavedova. However, upon the return of Kyrie Irving from injury on December 20, Williams' role decreased and his minutes were drastically reduced,[32] partially due to suffering from his own injury, a torn ligament in his right thumb.[33] On January 12, he was excused by the team from their game in Dallas to tend to a personal matter.[34] He started seeing more minutes in early February, but following the All-Star break, he appeared in just one game between February 18 and March 24 due to swelling in his left knee after being diagnosed withchondromalacia. He made his return to the lineup on March 26 against the New York Knicks, scoring eight points in 13 minutes off the bench.[35] However, in early April, he began experiencing discomfort and increased soreness in his left knee, forcing him to miss more time.[36][37] Williams received limited playing time during the Cavaliers' playoff run, a run that saw the team reach the2016 NBA Finals with a 12–2 record. Williams made his first appearance in the NBA Finals during a game 1 loss to theGolden State Warriors. Despite the Cavaliers going down 3–1 in the series following a game 4 loss, they went on to win the series in seven games to become the first team in NBA history to win the championship after being down 3–1.
On June 14, 2016, before the end of the 2016 NBA Finals, Williams exercised his player option with the Cavaliers for the 2016–17 season.[38] Williams originally declared that the 2016–17 season would be his last,[39][40] but on September 26, 2016, he announced his intentions to retire from the NBA.[41] However, he never officially signed retirement papers and instead remained on the Cavaliers' roster.[42] Not being a rotation player in 2015–16 for the first time had been the most challenging time of Williams' career, and while the departure ofMatthew Dellavedova in the 2016 off-season opened a spot at point guard, the Cavaliers draftedKay Felder in the2016 draft, which would have left Williams a third-string point guard for a second straight season.[42] Williams did not join the playing group for the 2016–17 season and in October 2016, he underwent surgery on his left knee.[43] In January 2017, rumors began to surface of Williams being a possible trade piece for the Cavaliers.[44]
Williams' final NBA game was game 7 of the 2016 NBA Finals on June 19, 2016, when Cleveland won the game (and thus the series) to theGolden State Warriors 93–89. In that game, Williams recorded 2 points, 1 turnover and 1 foul.[45]
On January 7, 2017, Williams was traded, along withMike Dunleavy Jr. and a future first-round draft pick, to theAtlanta Hawks in exchange forKyle Korver.[46] He was later shipped to theDenver Nuggets alongside cash considerations on January 18, 2017, in exchange for the rights toCenk Akyol; he was immediately waived by the Nuggets upon being acquired.[47] Two days later, he was claimed off waivers then immediately waived by thePhiladelphia 76ers. The 76ers reportedly made the claim in order to get $2.2 million closer to the salary floor while preventing the Nuggets from doing so after Denver acquired Williams in a trade with the Hawks.[48] He was later claimed and waived by the Nuggets on January 23 for a similar reason.[49][50]
In May 2018, Williams was named an assistant coach for theCal State Northridge Matadors men's basketball team, signalling an end to his playing career.[51] In May 2020, he was appointed head coach of theAlabama State Hornets basketball team.[52] He resigned two years later on March 9, 2022.[53] On March 14, Williams was named head coach at his hometown university,Jackson State, replacingWayne Brent.[54]
| Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama State Hornets(Southwestern Athletic Conference)(2020–2022) | |||||||||
| 2020–21 | Alabama State | 4–14 | 4–14 | 8th | |||||
| 2021–22 | Alabama State | 9–21 | 8–10 | T–8th | |||||
| Alabama State: | 13–35 (.271) | 12–24 (.333) | |||||||
| Jackson State Tigers(Southwestern Athletic Conference)(2022–present) | |||||||||
| 2022–23 | Jackson State | 14–19 | 12–6 | 4th | |||||
| 2023–24 | Jackson State | 15–17 | 11–7 | T–5th | |||||
| 2024–25 | Jackson State | 15–17 | 14–4 | 2nd | |||||
| 2025–26 | Jackson State | 5–14 | 4–2 | ||||||
| Jackson State: | 49–67 (.422) | 41–19 (.683) | |||||||
| Total: | 62–102 (.378) | ||||||||
National champion Postseason invitational champion | |||||||||
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field goal percentage | FT% | Free throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
| † | Won anNBA championship |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003–04 | Utah | 57 | 0 | 13.5 | .380 | .256 | .786 | 1.3 | 1.3 | .5 | .0 | 5.0 |
| 2004–05 | Milwaukee | 80 | 80 | 28.2 | .438 | .323 | .850 | 3.1 | 6.1 | .9 | .1 | 10.2 |
| 2005–06 | Milwaukee | 58 | 12 | 26.4 | .424 | .382 | .850 | 2.5 | 4.0 | .9 | .1 | 12.1 |
| 2006–07 | Milwaukee | 68 | 68 | 36.4 | .446 | .346 | .855 | 4.8 | 6.1 | 1.3 | .1 | 17.3 |
| 2007–08 | Milwaukee | 66 | 66 | 36.5 | .480 | .385 | .856 | 3.5 | 6.3 | 1.2 | .2 | 17.2 |
| 2008–09 | Cleveland | 81 | 81 | 35.0 | .467 | .436 | .912 | 3.4 | 4.1 | .9 | .1 | 17.8 |
| 2009–10 | Cleveland | 69 | 68 | 34.2 | .442 | .429 | .894 | 3.0 | 5.3 | 1.0 | .3 | 15.8 |
| 2010–11 | Cleveland | 36 | 34 | 29.6 | .385 | .265 | .833 | 2.7 | 7.1 | .9 | .3 | 13.3 |
| L.A. Clippers | 22 | 22 | 32.9 | .422 | .398 | .880 | 2.5 | 5.6 | .9 | .0 | 15.2 | |
| 2011–12 | L.A. Clippers | 52 | 1 | 28.3 | .426 | .389 | .900 | 1.9 | 3.1 | 1.0 | .1 | 13.2 |
| 2012–13 | Utah | 46 | 46 | 30.8 | .430 | .383 | .882 | 2.4 | 6.2 | 1.0 | .2 | 12.9 |
| 2013–14 | Portland | 74 | 0 | 24.8 | .417 | .369 | .876 | 2.1 | 4.3 | .7 | .1 | 9.7 |
| 2014–15 | Minnesota | 41 | 19 | 28.0 | .403 | .347 | .851 | 2.4 | 6.4 | .7 | .2 | 12.2 |
| Charlotte | 27 | 14 | 30.8 | .390 | .337 | .892 | 2.8 | 6.0 | .6 | .2 | 17.2 | |
| 2015–16† | Cleveland | 41 | 14 | 18.2 | .437 | .353 | .905 | 1.8 | 2.4 | .3 | .1 | 8.2 |
| Career | 818 | 525 | 29.2 | .434 | .378 | .871 | 2.8 | 4.9 | .9 | .1 | 13.2 | |
| All-Star | 1 | 0 | 17.0 | .500 | .400 | .000 | 2.0 | 5.0 | .0 | .0 | 12.0 | |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Milwaukee | 5 | 0 | 15.0 | .500 | .182 | .000 | .6 | 2.0 | .2 | .0 | 7.2 |
| 2009 | Cleveland | 14 | 14 | 38.6 | .408 | .372 | .767 | 3.2 | 4.1 | .7 | .1 | 16.3 |
| 2010 | Cleveland | 11 | 11 | 37.4 | .409 | .327 | .804 | 3.1 | 5.4 | .5 | .2 | 14.4 |
| 2012 | L.A. Clippers | 11 | 0 | 20.8 | .436 | .364 | .923 | .8 | 1.4 | .5 | .5 | 9.6 |
| 2014 | Portland | 8 | 0 | 23.4 | .373 | .238 | .909 | 1.5 | 1.9 | .4 | .0 | 7.4 |
| 2016† | Cleveland | 13 | 0 | 5.2 | .286 | .231 | .500 | .5 | .2 | .3 | .0 | 1.5 |
| Career | 62 | 25 | 24.4 | .409 | .330 | .809 | 1.5 | 2.6 | .5 | .1 | 9.8 | |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001–02 | Alabama | 35 | 35 | 32.0 | .376 | .262 | .857 | 3.9 | 4.5 | 1.7 | 0.1 | 10.4 |
| 2002–03 | Alabama | 29 | 29 | 35.8 | .431 | .317 | .838 | 3.9 | 3.9 | 1.2 | 0.2 | 16.4 |
| Career | 64 | 64 | 33.7 | .405 | .294 | .847 | 3.9 | 4.2 | 1.5 | 0.1 | 13.1 | |
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