Former SuperSonics star Gus Williams passed away on Wednesday nearly five years after suffering a major stroke, writes Tim Booth of The Seattle Times. Williams was 71 years old.
A 6’2″ point guard whose nickname was “The Wizard,” Williams played 11 seasons in the NBA with the Warriors, SuperSonics, Bullets (Wizards) and Hawks. He spent six seasons in Seattle, helping guide the team to its lone championship in 1979.
Williams made two All-Star and two All-NBA appearances with the Sonics, averaging 20.3 points, 6.0 assists, 3.0 rebounds and 2.3 steals in 477 regular season games (34.1 minutes per contest).
The former USC star was even better in the postseason, averaging 23.2 PPG, 5.3 APG, 3.8 RPG and 2.0 SPG in 69 playoff games during his time with Seattle, including 29.0 PPG, 3.6 RPG, 3.6 APG and 1.0 SPG in the ’79 NBA Finals.
Our condolences go out to Williams’ family and friends.
Here’s more from around the basketball world:
- Kevin Harlan is nearing a deal to call NBA games for Amazon Prime Video starting with the 2025/26 season, sources tell Andrew Marchand of The Athletic. Harland, 64, has been with TNT Sports for decades, but the network is in its final season as an NBA media rights holder. Harland would be Amazon’s No. 2 play-by-play announcer behind Ian Eagle, Marchand adds.
- Chinese prospect Hansen Yang, who has aspirations of entering his name in the 2025 NBA draft, has signed with Klutch Sports Group and will be represented by CEO Rich Paul, among other agents, reports Bobby Marks of ESPN (Twitter link). A 7’1″ center, the 19-year-old Yang is averaging 16.4 points, 10.5 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 2.7 blocks in 31 games this season with the Qingdao Eagles of the Chinese Basketball Association.
- Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report examines what every NBA team would do if the trade deadline were today, while ESPN insiders Bobby Marks, Kevin Pelton, Andre Snelling and Chris Herring (subscription required) come up with five hypothetical trades that could change the title race. Pelton’s three-team proposal involves Jimmy Butler landing with the Kings and DeMar DeRozan heading to the Heat.