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Around SBN: The Animated GIFs Of January

Get to know your new[ish] Spurs #2: Marcus Williams


After davis's recent post introducing Richard Jefferson to us, it's time to review a guy that was already on the Spurs' roster, but often forgotten in the chaos of the big trade, and then the draft.  A quick note to RJ:  even though his name is Marcus Williams, he's not going to push you away(thanks to BlaseE for the find) after a good offensive possession.  In fact, you both play the same position(SF), so you won't be on the floor together.  And you even played college ball at the same place, so hopefully you'll have plenty to talk about.

Marcuswilliams_medium
You guys better get used to that face - he makes it on every image found with Google.

Star-divide

Obviously, one of our new players from Arizona is much more famous, and is much easier to find information about.  So this post is not going to be anywhere near as epic as davis's introduction to RJ.  However, there's still a lot we can learn about the skinny, multi-tattoed, headband-wearing ath-uh-letic kid that played all of 2 minutes for the Spurs last season, and missed his only shot. 

For more info on Marcus and the Spurs' D-League prospects, be sure to check out Ridiculous Upside.  Scott was even nice enough to leave some great links about Marcus at the beginning of the comments on this artice.

The Journey to the Spurs

We'll start back in 2005, when Marcus was a senior at Roosevelt High School in Seattle.

Marcuswilliamshs_medium
What's Frodo Baggins doing there?

In high school, Marcus had some pretty good numbers:  30 ppg, 11 rpg, 3 apg, 3 spg, 3 bpg.  And he led his school from terrible in his first year to making the state playoffs in his final year.  Of course, that was high school.  So what happened after that?

Well, Marcus decided to take a scholarship to play at The University of Hell Arizona.  He played 2 seasons, and in his sophomore year he was putting up 16.6 ppg(on 49.4% shooting), 6.7 rpg, 2.2 apg, 1.1 spg, and 0.8 bpg.  Not as gaudy as the numbers he put up in high school, but those are enough to make you leading scorer at Arizona over Chase Budinger and a younger Jordan Hill.  He was also used as the primary stopper on the opposition's best perimieter player almost every night.

Mwilldunk_medium
Hey, cut it out - future Spurs don't do that.

So the Spurs drafted him at #33 in 2007.  The next year, he was on the Toros' roster most of the time, with some short stints in the NBA, appearing in one game for the Spurs in 2007-08, then jumped ship to play in 10 games for the Clippers at the end of that season. 

Marcuswilliamsspurs_medium

Marcuswilliamsclippers_medium
The NBA's version of "Scared Straight": Ladies and gentleman, the Los Angeles Clippers.

Last Season & The Future

The 2008-09 season found Marcus back with the Toros until the Spurs called him up after Manu's injury.  Marcus played 2 minutes (watch for #2 at about the 1:50 mark) with zero stats for the Spurs after being called up.  After his short stint for the Spurs last season, Marcus and Malik Hariston(who also spent time with the Spurs last season, and may make the team this year) led the Toros to victory in the first round of the D-League playoffs last season, then promptly lost in the final.  I've gotta say his defense isn't exactly impressive in the Toros video, but that's such a small sample size it's doubtful that it really tells us anything.  He looks better on D in the Spurs video, though.

Here's a stat chart, taken from Marcus's Draft Express page:

Basic Statistics

YearLeagueTeamGPMinPtsFGFGAFG%2Pt2PtA2P%3Pt3PtA3P%FTMFTAFT%OffDefTOTAstsStlsBlksTOsPFs
2005/06 NCAA Arizona 33 28.8 13.0 4.8 10.6 45.3 3.9 8.5 45.7 0.9 2.1 43.5 2.5 3.4 72.6 1.8 2.8 4.7 1.8 1.0 0.5 1.8 1.8
2006/07 NCAA Arizona 30 32.9 16.6 6.5 13.2 49.4 5.8 10.6 54.6 0.8 2.7 28.8 2.7 3.9 69.5 2.1 4.6 6.7 2.2 1.1 0.8 2.7 2.2
2007/08 NBA Clippers 10 3.6 1.0 0.5 1.9 26.3 0.5 1.9 26.3 0.0 0.0   0.0 0.0   0.4 0.8 1.2 0.3 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.3
2007/08 NBA Spurs 1 2.0 0.0 0.0 1.0 0.0 0.0 1.0 0.0 0.0 0.0   0.0 0.0   0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 1.0 0.0 0.0
2008/09 NBA Warriors 11 5.1 1.1 0.4 1.5 23.5 0.2 1.0 18.2 0.2 0.5 33.3 0.2 0.5 33.3 0.0 0.4 0.4 1.2 0.1 0.1 0.4 0.5
2008/09 DLEAGUE Austin Toros 45 42.8 23.0 8.5 18.9 44.8 7.4 15.7 47.3 1.0 3.2 32.2 5.0 6.0 83.8 1.0 6.0 7.0 5.3 1.7 0.6 4.0 2.6

During the last season, when Marcus was lighting up the D-League as a member of the Toros, he was often described as a point-forward.  Those 5.3 apg would seem to justify that description, but it hasn't translated to his short stints with the Spurs and Clippers. Then again, he's not exactly been given much chance in such limited minutes, but the numbers per 40 minutes seem to also indicate the same thing.  By the way, I don't think our Marcus ever played for the Warriors, but the one who played with RJ in New Jersey has played for them, so we're ignoring that line until we get confirmation that it was actually him.

In any case, he should be on the summer league roster, so hopefully we'll have a bit more of him making douchebag players from other teams look desperate.  And yes, I mean Mr. paper airplane himself, Jason Terry.  If he can make waves in the summer league the way he did in Austin, he probably keeps his roster spot, and his currently non-guaranteed roster spot.

070719_williams_drive_terry_gt_medium
Is that ATS looking over Marcus's shoulder? If not, he will be this summer - with press credentials.

Williams is on the roster mainly because the Spurs wanted to keep him away from other teams after his renaissance in the D-league last year.  It remains to be seen whether he has what it takes(his big weakness in college was that he had no jump shot) to be on the Spurs full-time this year, but hopefully he'll have more of a chance this time around.  He seems like a "Spurs" guy, and he obviously has some talent, so here's to hoping he can become a quality rotation player behind RJ.  It would be nice for another one of our recent draft picks to stick.

Comment 37 comments  |  5 recs  | 

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Comments

Display:

For more Marcus Williams content

Check out SBNation’s D-League blog, Ridiculous Upside. Not sure how you didn’t come across it, but we actually posted quite a bit about Marcus Williams this season, including having a writer in Austin…
For some relevant content looking at the most recent season, check here, here, here and here, among others.

Blogging at RidiculousUpside, where we converse with recently fired mascots.

by Scott Schroeder on Jun 28, 2009 11:10 PM CDT reply actions  

Very good stuff Scott, thanks.

Just call me The Profit

by Manuwar on Jun 28, 2009 11:22 PM CDT up reply actions  

Heya Scott, thanks for the links. I see in one of your potential call-up posts a guy named David Noel. Is he the North Carolina guy? Because there’s a David Noel import playing in our local league and his team (which also happens to be my favorite local team) is in the finals.

by silverandblack_davis on Jun 29, 2009 12:50 AM CDT up reply actions  

btw Scott, I totally meant to plug you in this article, and I’ll edit this when I get home later to give you your due.

Bring back Bruce, and free James Gist!
Pounding the Rock - where RJ happens.

by Tim C. on Jun 29, 2009 7:19 PM CDT up reply actions  

rik, nize post — very much appreciated.

Rec’d not wrecked.

I want my Manu

by J.R. Wilco on Jun 28, 2009 11:30 PM CDT reply actions  

Great job, rikkido.

Just wanted to add that you say: “In fact, you both play the same position(SF), so you won’t be on the floor together”, but Varner has been stressing the point-forward thing lately and he seems to think he’d be a point guard for us and not a SF.

I hadn’t checked it out before but he is only 6’3". A little less than an inch taller than Hill, but Hill’s 6’9" wingspan is 2 inches longer. I didn’t really know anything about him until I read your post so thanks for taking the time to write it.

Did we really just add a player good enough to be guarded by Bruce Bowen?

by BlaseE on Jun 29, 2009 12:44 AM CDT reply actions  

He’s 6’ 7". http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?playerId=3240

The OTHER Marcus Williams is probably 6’ 3".

No offense to Tim, but I’ll believe a point-forward when I see Pop play a point-forward. To my knowledge, Pop has never done that before.

Also, Pop seems to play his 2’s and 3’s interchangeably. So yes, I think it is likely that they would see time together. Assuming Marcus sees much time.

We specialize in misinformation around here. Facts and stats just get in the way.

by Wayne Vore (ATS) on Jun 29, 2009 9:19 AM CDT up reply actions  

What he said. And I think Pop may use Macrus as a PF in some of the more extreme smallball situations[like against GSW] , too.

Bring back Bruce, and free James Gist!
Pounding the Rock - where RJ happens.

by Tim C. on Jun 29, 2009 9:22 AM CDT up reply actions  

Nope

There’s no way Marcus can play power forward..
Point-forward, he can handle (in the D-League at least), but definitely couldn’t play on the block in the NBA, or the D-League for that matter.
You guys should watch him play recently before deciding what positions he can play..

Blogging at RidiculousUpside, where we converse with recently fired mascots.

by Scott Schroeder on Jun 29, 2009 10:28 AM CDT up reply actions  

He’s not saying he’s a 4. He’s saying Pop would play him at the 4 the same way he played Udoka at the 4 and sometimes Finley or Bowen. He’s as ‘4’ or ‘PF’ as those guys.

We specialize in misinformation around here. Facts and stats just get in the way.

by Wayne Vore (ATS) on Jun 29, 2009 10:41 AM CDT up reply actions  

Odoka has a little more beef to mix it up inside:

"The evolution has been good, and I am much more tranquil now in the face of what comes next,"--Manu Ginobili

by VWolf on Jun 29, 2009 11:39 AM CDT up reply actions  

And so does Udoka

"The evolution has been good, and I am much more tranquil now in the face of what comes next,"--Manu Ginobili

by VWolf on Jun 29, 2009 11:43 AM CDT up reply actions  

You underestimate Pop’s craziness – At one point last season in a game against GSW, Udoka was playing C and Finley PF. I wasn’t suggesting it would be a normal occurence, though – we have enough undersized PF’s already.

Bring back Bruce, and free James Gist!
Pounding the Rock - where RJ happens.

by Tim C. on Jun 29, 2009 11:54 AM CDT up reply actions  

Ha

Alright. If Pop will play Finley at PF, he could probably play Williams at the 4 as well. I’d just advise that he plays him as point-forward before power forward. The slashing 2 is probably ideal, however.

Blogging at RidiculousUpside, where we converse with recently fired mascots.

by Scott Schroeder on Jun 29, 2009 3:30 PM CDT up reply actions  

Draft Express is all backwards on him….

They have Marcus Williams. This picture is of our Marcus Williams and it says he went to Arizona. At the top it says he is 6’7" like you say. I didn’t see that but looked at his draft information. This says his height with shoes is 6’3.25". Beneath that,

Williams showed well today against his new teammates, doing enough to convince Chris Mullin to pull the trigger on a deal to acquire him. While today was obviously not the only factor in the deal, it show what kind of value the former UCONN guard can have in Golden State’s offense.

But then there is also a profile called Marcus Williams (UCONN). He is a point guard with those measurements from UCONN.

So yes, I was wrong, but Draft Express fooled me. Apparently, on DraftExpress, Marcus Williams (UCONN) became Marcus Williams (Spurs) when he was traded to Golden State. So is Pop going to play him like Barry then?

Did we really just add a player good enough to be guarded by Bruce Bowen?

by BlaseE on Jun 29, 2009 1:04 PM CDT up reply actions  

Yes, from the Houston bench. ; )

My name is DeJuan Blair. You blocked my shot. Prepare to die. - CH&LD
I want my Manu

by J.R. Wilco on Jun 29, 2009 1:55 PM CDT up reply actions  

I bet Jonathon Givony would appreciate an email letting him know they have a post with the wrong guy.

We specialize in misinformation around here. Facts and stats just get in the way.

by Wayne Vore (ATS) on Jun 29, 2009 1:56 PM CDT up reply actions  

I feel like you’re tricking me and if I send that email, I’ll have 24 hours to live or next time I open Firefox it will say “Banned from Interwebs…Go draw in MSPaint, idiot.”.

Did we really just add a player good enough to be guarded by Bruce Bowen?

by BlaseE on Jun 29, 2009 2:43 PM CDT up reply actions   2 recs

GOL

My name is DeJuan Blair. You blocked my shot. Prepare to die. - CH&LD
I want my Manu

by J.R. Wilco on Jun 29, 2009 3:06 PM CDT up reply actions  

I echo JRW’s GOL. This comment is pure hilarity.

Bring back Bruce, and free James Gist!
Pounding the Rock - where RJ happens.

by Tim C. on Jun 29, 2009 3:14 PM CDT up reply actions  

There’s one Marcus Williams that played for the Nets. He was a Point guard, a top prospect the year he was drafted. He was suposed to be in the top 10, but fell to something like 22 to the Nets. It was considered a possible steal, as Marcus was supossed to be Kidd’s heir to the point guard position on the Nets. He could learn the ropes from one of the greats. But Marcus…..sucked big time. His ass was shipped to the Warriors for a bag of peanuts after a couple of very unsucessful seasons. He has been waived since then.

OUR Marcus Williams cures cancer with his tears. And played for the clippers.

"Rock and Roll angels bring that HardRock Hallelujah"

by Chilai on Jun 29, 2009 5:08 PM CDT up reply actions  

rikiddo, this is awesome. Hmm… these Arizona kids are starting to invade the Spurs one player at a time.

I read something back when Williams was in college that he had character issues, that’s why I was skeptical when the Spurs drafted him. I’ll see if I can look that one up.

by silverandblack_davis on Jun 29, 2009 12:53 AM CDT reply actions  

Now, I am just a novice around here but I think it’s hard to tell with the short amount of playtime (NBA). Some talent is good. It can be built upon if he is coachable unless, he has character issues than coachability is lost. At least youth is on his side and a few good short reviews. “More chance” and/or “quality rotation” (that’s hopeful) – if the draft pick sticks lets hope he be efficient and keeps the momentum forward from the Toros victory.

by cojones2thewall on Jun 29, 2009 2:16 AM CDT reply actions  

I’d think after having Marcus with the Toros for the better part of two years, a couple of training camps, and the end of last season that the team know whether he is coachable. I’m thinking he’s passed that test.

We specialize in misinformation around here. Facts and stats just get in the way.

by Wayne Vore (ATS) on Jun 29, 2009 9:20 AM CDT up reply actions  

Link – this is the only place I found anything resembling a character issue in my “research”.

Coupled with a one-game suspension a few weeks earlier for a curfew violation, it all added up to question marks about Williams’ game.

Arizona assistant coach Josh Pastner, however, last week launched into a vigorous defense of his former player, saying Williams wasn’t to blame for the Wildcats’ struggles.

I meant to link that in the article itself – whoops.

Bring back Bruce, and free James Gist!
Pounding the Rock - where RJ happens.

by Tim C. on Jun 29, 2009 9:25 AM CDT up reply actions  

This is great, rik. You guys make coming to PTR a treat. Reccing you for the sake of recness.

Straight from the No-Stat Zone to your computer!
Dunkin' Cheerleaders

by LatinD on Jun 29, 2009 8:37 AM CDT reply actions  

For what its worth, I liked Hairston a lot. I thought he was going to be our next malik rose. Can we have a post about him?

"Rock and Roll angels bring that HardRock Hallelujah"

by Chilai on Jun 29, 2009 9:01 AM CDT reply actions  

Wow, has Hairston’s game changed that much since college? He was nothing like Malik Rose in the NCAA. He was defintely a GF type. Has he put on a lot of weight and lost his jumper or something?

"The evolution has been good, and I am much more tranquil now in the face of what comes next,"--Manu Ginobili

by VWolf on Jun 29, 2009 11:42 AM CDT up reply actions  

He was a “girlfriend” type in college? I guess it was his experimental phase…

Maybe Chilai means Hairston could be a Malik Rose type in terms of providing hustle and athleticism. He’s definitely not big enough to play as even an undersized 4.

Hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things, and no good thing ever dies. --Andy Dufresne

by tomasito on Jun 29, 2009 12:27 PM CDT up reply actions  

Exactly. He doesnt seem to have ANY post move (unlike Rose) but I like the energy he brings to the game and the way his name its the same than our beloved ex-PF
He seemed to me as the GF version of Malik Rose.

"Rock and Roll angels bring that HardRock Hallelujah"

by Chilai on Jun 29, 2009 5:11 PM CDT up reply actions  

Gotcha. He is a hustler isn’t he?

"The evolution has been good, and I am much more tranquil now in the face of what comes next,"--Manu Ginobili

by VWolf on Jun 29, 2009 11:22 PM CDT up reply actions  

If he makes the team, sure.

Bring back Bruce, and free James Gist!
Pounding the Rock - where RJ happens.

by Tim C. on Jun 29, 2009 11:54 AM CDT up reply actions  

Rec'd straight to AZ

Let’s hope that he can come in and be a solid backup at SF for cheap. If he and Hairston can provide that depth for the Spurs that will help out tremendously, because let’s be honest, we’d really rather not be counting on Billy Ocean this season.

by Big50 on Jun 29, 2009 10:18 AM CDT reply actions  

Mr. Anonymous

I saw Marcus at the Best Buy at the Rim and nobody knew who he was. Hopefully if he has some success this summer and gets some minutes next season that will change.

by Este on Jun 29, 2009 10:54 AM CDT reply actions  

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