In the middle of last season, when the Cleveland Cavaliers were floundering, LeBron James all but demanded that the front office find the team another play-maker. What they ended up with was Deron Williams, who believe or not, was once widely-considered one of the top two point guards in the NBA, alongside Chris Paul.
But those days are long ago and far away. In fairness, you can hardly pin much of the blame on Williams for the way the Warriors categorically dominated the Cavs in this year’s Finals, but his abysmal play was certainly one of the more unfortunate storylines. Because the internet exists, we now have a nearly 5-minute low-light mix of all his cringe-worthy plays during the series.
It’d be easier if this were funnier, but mostly it’s just depressing to watch him brick wide-open shots, get routinely beat on defense, and throw ill-advised passes that result in costly turnovers. Williams didn’t score a single point through the first three games and ended the series with five total points on 2-of-16 shooting overall, including 1-of-9 from behind the arc.
It’s probably a safe bet that D-Will won’t be back in a Cavs uniform next season, and he certainly didn’t endear himself to prospective teams going forward with his Finals play. That said, not many people looked very good against the Warriors this season, so maybe Williams can still find a fresh start next year based off his play with the Cavs prior to the Finals.
