Where Are They Now, 2010; Part 73
June 1st, 2010
– Donell Williams Donell Williams was a training camp signing of the Clippers in 2007, who hasn’t played anywhere of note before or since. A 6’3 guard, Williams spent his first two collegiate years at West Los Angeles Community College, before transferring to Fayetteville State for his final two years. He averaged 15.7 points and 6.0 rebounds in his senior year, 2004-05. D-Will then went back to school for the 2005-06 season to complete his degree, even though he wasn’t eligible to play for the basketball team. The following season, his basketball career finally started, with Williams now aged 26. Williams played in the 2006 JBL Pro-Am League, a largely unheard-of American minor league that takes place between April and May, in which he averaged 27 ppg, 16 rpg and 5 apg. It appears he then did not play for the next 16 months between May 2006 and October 2007. And then he was signed by the Clippers. After not making the team, Williams went to the D-League, totalled 38 points and 21 rebounds in 18 games with the Bakersfield Jam in the D-League, and was waived in January 2008. He hasn’t played anywhere since. Of all the random training camp signings we’ve had over the years, I think this one is the most random. Until the day that I’m hired as a General Manager, I will never understand how or why these signings happen. Where is the resumé? I mean, good for Williams for getting the gig; he got to live a dream and got paid for doing it, something we should all be envious of. He’s surely done something right. But the NBA isn’t an adult dreams factory. What was the Clippers reasoning? An extra man for practice, maybe….but why THAT one? Then again, why not, I suppose. […]
Where Are They Now, 2009; Part 58
March 24th, 2009
– Donell Williams is a training camp signing of the Clippers in 2007 who hasn’t done anything of note before or since. A 28-year-old 6’3 guard, Williams spent his first two collegiate years at West Los Angeles Community College, before transferring to Fayetteville State for his final two years, averaging 15.7 points and 6.0 rebounds in his senior year, 2004-05. D-Will then went back to school for the 2005-06 season to complete his degree, even though he wasn’t eligible to play for the basketball team. The following season, his basketball career finally started, with Williams now aged 26. Williams played in the 2006 JBL Pro-Am League, a largely unheard-of American minor league that takes place between April and May, in which he averaged 27 ppg, 16 rpg and 5 apg. He then did nothing for the next 16 months, between May 2006 and October 2007. And then he was somehow signed by the Clippers. After unsurprisingly not making the team, Williams went to the D-League, totalled 38 points and 21 rebounds in 18 games with the Bakersfield Jam, and was waived in January 2008. He hasn’t played anywhere since. Of all the random training camp signings we’ve had over the years – Brad Stricker, Rashid Byrd, Ajani Williams, etc – I think this one is the most random. – Corliss Williamson retired in the 2007 offseason and became an assistant coach at Arkansas Baptist College. Whether he’s still there or not, I can’t tell. Here’s a story he’s in from a reunion of the 1994 Arkansas Razorbacks. – Kevin Willis is now 46, and presumably not going to make another comeback. Then again, we fell for that once before. According to this story from October, Willis was running a custom jeans company called Willis & Walker. However, the company’s […]
