WALTHAM, Mass. -- Celtics newcomer Sean Williams was the last player off the floor after Monday’s practice, his first with the team.
The Celtics signed Williams last week and he joined the team in Atlanta, playing 3 minutes 27 seconds in the 97-92 loss to the Hawks last Friday night. Williams said he was “very surprised” to have gotten a call from his agent saying the Celtics were interested.
“I didn’t know what was going to happen so it was quite a surprise," he said.
Williams had been playing for the Texas Legends of the NBA’s D-League, where he had put up some decent numbers over 27 games (15.2 points, 8.9 rebounds and 2.5 blocks per game). He also had appeared in eight games for the Dallas Mavericks this season.
Doc Rivers said there was one constant in every conversation he had with many of Williams’ former coaches: “That he’s a good kid, a smart kid, who has done some stupid things. The difference is, he got caught.”
Williams has had his share of off-court issues both at Boston College and in the NBA. But he has undeniable talent and, said Rivers, “is athletic as hell.” Rivers said he talked to former BC coach Al Skinner, former BC assistant Ed Cooley as well as NBA coaches Lawrence Frank, Del Harris and Rick Carlisle. “Basically, we talked to everybody," he said. “They all said pretty much the same thing: He can play, but he does the other stuff. That’s what we want to see if we can help him with, the other stuff. Kevin (Garnett) is as positive as any guy if he thinks you want to play basketball. I think Sean wants to play basketball.”