Walt Williams also known as the "Wizard" has played for Sacramento, Miami, Toronto, Portland, Houston and begins the 2002-03 season with the Dallas Mavericks. The University of Maryland product was the seventh overall seletion by the Kings in the 1992 NBA Draft and has been a consistent three-point threat wherever he has played.
2001-02:
Averaged 9.4 points and 3.4 rebounds in 48 games (25 starts)...Scored a season-high 31 points on Nov. 20 at Portland, connecting on a career-high six 3-pointers for the seventh time in his career…Also hit six 3-pointers on Dec. 20 vs. Milwaukee…Placed on the injured list on 3/28 with right ankle spurs and missed the remainder of the season.
2000-01:
Averaged 8.3 points and 3.4 rebounds in 72 games (31 starts) ... reached 20 points three times ... hit 39.5 percent of his 3-point attempts, ranking him third on the Rockets...ranked second on the team with 98 3-pointers made ... ranked sixth on the Rockets in scoring average...reached double figures in scoring 28 times and 20 points three times...led Houston in points twice, rebounds six times and assists once...set season highs with 28 points (his most with the Rockets) and 10 rebounds on Nov. 2 vs. Milwaukee.
1999-2000:
Notched 21 points, 11 rebounds and 6 assists in a 111-102 win over Dallas on 4/13...Recorded 23 points (4-4 3-FG) and 12 boards in a 103-93 win at Denver on 4/11...Tallied 23 points and 7 assists in a 119-116 win at Seattle on 4/7...Logged 20 points and 11 rebounds in a 121-86 win over Golden State on 3/28...Totaled 24 points in a 123-78 win over Chicago on 3/26...Netted 19 points in a 100-98 loss at Toronto on 3/19...Posted 20 points in a 103-92 loss in Washington on 12/26
1998-99:
Posted 20 points (6-11 FG), 4 rebounds and 3 assists in a 119-84 victory over the Seattle SuperSonics on 4/28...Registered a season and game-high 28 points (4-6 3FG), 6 rebounds and 4 assists in a 93-77 victory over the Denver Nuggets on 4/26...Recorded 17 points (3-6 3FG), 5 rebounds and 4 assists in a 97-70 victory over the L.A. Clippers on 4/10...Scored 17 of his team-high 22 points in the 2nd half, adding 4 rebounds and 3 assists, in a 94-85 win over the New Jersey Nets on 2/24...Totaled 17 points (5-6 3FG), 4 assists and 3 rebounds in a 100-85 victory over the Denver Nuggets on 2/17
1997-98:
Posted 19 points and 3 rebounds in a 92-66 victory over the Sacramento Kings on 4/14...Scored 20 points and grabbed 4 rebounds, in 18 minutes, in a 108-102 victory over the Vancouver Grizzlies on 3/26...Recorded 16 points (7-9 FG, 2-3 3FG), 4 rebounds and 4 assists against the L.A. Lakers on 3/11...Registered 15 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists, in his Blazers debut, in a 101-83 win over the Golden State Warriors on 2/17...Traded by the Raptors with Damon Stoudamire and Carlos Rogers to the Portland Trail Blazers for Kenny Anderson, Alvin Williams, Gary Trent, two first-round draft choices, a second-round draft choice and cash on 2/13...Totaled 24 points and 4 rebounds against the Phoenix Suns on 2/3...Scored 18 points (7-11 FG, 4-7 3FG) against the Portland Trail Blazers on 2/1...On the injured list from 1/12 to 1/24 due to a hyperextended left knee...Posted a season-high 39 points, hitting 6-of-8 three-pointers, 6 rebounds and 3 assists in a 104-97 win over the Philadelphia 76ers on 12/10...Recorded team-highs of 25 points and 12 rebounds, adding 4 assists and 3 steals, against the Boston Celtics on 11/14...Registered 18 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals against the Miami Heat on 10/31
1996-97:
Williams had a fine all-around season in his Toronto debut. He started 73 games for the Raptors, missing nine contests due to an assortment of minor injuries, and averaged 16.4 points, 5.0 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.33 steals and 0.85 blocks in 36.3 minutes per game, shooting .400 from three-point range on 175-for-437. He tied for 10th in the NBA in three-pointers and was 17th in three-point accuracy, posting career-highs in minutes, rebounds, blocks, three-pointers and three-point accuracy. He led the team in three-point shooting, ranked second in scoring and three-pointers and third in assists and steals. He scored at least 20 points 22 times, helping the Raptors to a 13-9 record in those games. He tallied a season-high 34 points in a 100-96 loss to Dallas on Nov. 5 and grabbed a season-high 12 rebounds, along with 33 points, six assists and four blocks, in a 110-86 victory over Phoenix on Feb. 1. The latter was one of four games in which he had a season-high six three-pointers, and he had five treys in six other contests. He posted career-highs of six steals in an 89-88 loss at Miami on Dec. 14 and five blocks in a 120-84 victory over Portland on Jan. 26. He finished fourth in the AT&T Shootout on All-Star Weekend.
1995-96:
One of the most versatile players in the NBA, Williams joined a coach who prizes versatility in Miami's Pat Riley when he was obtained from Sacramento on February 22. He started 73 games between the Kings and Heat, averaging a combined 13.6 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.2 assists in 29.7 minutes per game. He continued to develop as a long-range scoring threat, hitting a career-high 114 three-pointers in 293 attempts for a solid .389 percentage, by far the best mark of his four-year pro career. With Miami, Williams averaged 12.0 points, 4.0 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 28.1 minutes per game over 28 games. In his first game with the Heat he drilled four three-pointers for his 12 points in a 108-101 win over Philadelphia on Feb. 25. He scored 20 or more points for Miami in seven games, including 27 points (with five three-pointers) in a 121-97 win at Houston on March 16, and 23 points (including 6-for-7 on treys) in a 122-106 victory at Milwaukee on March 22. He had a season-high 12 rebounds in a 103-95 win at New York on April 13 and a season-high six assists in a 102-93 win over Detroit on March 20. Williams started all three playoff games against Chicago but was limited to 4.7 points and 4.0 rebounds in 23.3 minutes per game in the three losses.
1994-95:
Coming off a frustrating second season in the league, Williams bounced back with an active 1994-95 campaign that saw him become one of the most versatile players in the NBA. He ranked among the league's top 40 in four major categories: scoring (16.4 ppg), assists (4.1 apg), steals (1.60 per game), and blocks (0.82 per game). He was sixth among forwards and centers in steals and was one of only six nonguards to rank among the league's top 40 in assists. Williams finished second on the Sacramento Kings in both scoring and assists and was fourth on the team in rebounding with an average of 4.5 boards per contest,. He also canned 103 of 296 shots from three-point distance for a .348 percentage. Although his three-point percentage didn't rank among the league's best, Williams made more treys than either of the NBA's top two three-point shooters, Steve Kerr (89) and Detlef Schrempf (93). The season was a satisfying one for Williams, who had earned All-Rookie Second Team honors in 1992-93 but had missed 25 games because of injuries and scored only 11.2 points per contest in 1993-94. Williams remained healthy through most of the 1994-95 season, starting all 77 games in which he appeared.
1993-94:
By the end of his second year in the NBA, Williams had yet to play a full season. Injuries plagued him once again in 1993-94, limiting him to only 57 games and hampering his effectiveness. The former NBA All-Rookie Team selection missed the Kings' first seven preseason games and the first eight regular-season contests with a stress fracture of his left fibula. Then, on April 5, he went down with a severe sprain in his right leg and missed the rest of the year. In between, Williams averaged 11.2 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 2.1 assists in 23.8 minutes per game. He shot only .390 from the floor and .635 from the free-throw line. However, Williams's frustrating season was not without its highlights. Playing in his first game of the season on November 21, he threw down a last-second dunk over the Chicago Bulls' Toni Kukoc to lift the Kings to a 103-101 victory. Williams scored a season-high 32 points versus the Atlanta Hawks on March 31 and grabbed a career-best 15 rebounds on February 16 against the Philadelphia 76ers.
1992-93:
Although Walt Williams didn't prove to be "the next Magic Johnson," as some college basketball fans labeled him, he was a superb find for the Sacramento Kings, who picked him seventh in the 1992 NBA Draft. After averaging a school-record 26.8 points in his senior season at Maryland, "the Wizard" posted the fourth-highest rookie scoring average (17.0 ppg) in the Kings' franchise history, behind Oscar Robertson, Lionel Simmons, and Jerry Lucas. He was rewarded with a spot on the 1993 NBA All-Rookie Second Team. Among NBA rookies, Williams was fourth in scoring, fifth in steals (1.12 per game), and fifth in assists (3.0 apg). He fractured the long-finger metacarpal bone at the base of his right (shooting) hand in a freak accident on January 19 against the Houston Rockets and missed the next five weeks (16 games) while his hand remained in a cast. Activated from the injured list on February 22, he averaged 20.5 points in the 24 games thereafter.
Williams scored in double figures in 52 of the 59 games he played, including 19 games of 20 or more and a team-leading six contests of at least 30. He scored a season-high 40 points against the Philadelphia 76ers on January 2.
COLLEGE:
Williams was on the Associated Press All-America Second Team as a senior at Maryland in 1991-92, averaging a school-record 26.8 points, 5.6 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and 2.1 steals. He scored 20 or more points in 19 straight games and broke Len Bias's single-season point total record at Maryland by chalking up 776 points as a senior.
