The Charlotte Hornets gave Mark Williams a video tribute.
The Charlotte Hornets gave Phoenix Suns Mark Williams a video tribute on Thursday and the center had "mixed emotions" about it.
Why? Because the Hornets traded him twice.
The Hornets traded Williams to the Los Angeles Lakers last season. The trade got rescinded because the Lakers weren't comfortable with Williams' physical.
Williams finished last season with the Hornets but was traded to the Suns last summer. The Duke product finished his Charlotte career with averages of 12.3 points, 8.8 rebounds, 1.4 assists, 0.7 steals and 1.1 blocks per game.
For the Suns this season, Williams is putting up 11.6 points, 8.0 rebounds, 1.0 assists, 0.9 steals and 0.9 blocks per contest while shooting 63.7% from the field and 76.7% from the free-throw line.
Charlotte is in eighth place in the Eastern Conference standings. All signs point toward the team being in the NBA play-in tournament. The Hornets are looking to make the playoffs for the first time since 2016.
With Kon Knueppel, LaMelo Ball, Brandon Miller and Miles Bridges leading the way, Charlotte has been on a tear since the All-Star break. It's been great to see the Hornets become relevant again under head coach Charles Lee.
"Charles has been great," Knueppel told Noa Dalzell of CelticsBlog. "He really preaches daily improvement. So even when you know the losses were stacking up early in the season, it was really just about continuing to get better each day. And I think going into each day with that mindset, living in the present, is really good, especially for our young team."
Knueppel is averaging 18.8 points, 5.4 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game on the season while shooting 48.2% from the field, 43.1% from beyond the arc and 86.3% from the free-throw line. He could win the Rookie of the Year Award.
Knueppel leads the NBA in 3s. He's argubaly the best shooter in the league as a rookie. That says a lot about how talented this kid is.
Hornets Roundtable also offers a fan community and message board. We’d love to have you join us to talk all things Hornets. Click the “Join” button at the top of the page to join our community for free.