Mo Williams happy to be role player for Cavaliers
Rick Noland | The Chronicle-Telegram
INDEPENDENCE — Mo Williams didn’t need to be told that new teammate LeBron James was fully behind the three-team trade that brought the point guard to Cleveland from Milwaukee.
“If he would have said no, I think I’d (still) be in Milwaukee,” Williams said Thursday during a conference call with the media.
James, playing with the United States Olympic men’s basketball team, told reporters at the Beijing Olympics he was excited Williams was joining the Cavaliers, who reached the NBA Finals in 2007 and lost in seven games to eventual champion Boston in the 2008 Eastern Conference semifinals.
While refusing to say anything negative about Milwaukee, where many media outlets praised the Bucks’ acquisition of point guard Luke Ridnour from Oklahoma City in the six-player deal, Williams made it clear he was happy to be a part of the Cavs.
“It’s a great opportunity to be in Cleveland playing with such a great team,” he said. “I can bring a valuable piece to that team. I’m not saying I’m the answer, but I can bring a piece.”
Williams, who averaged 17.2 points, 3.5 rebounds and 6.3 assists last season, will actually bring several pieces to the Cavs.
Foremost among them is the fact the 6-foot-1, 185-pounder can score in a variety of ways. Williams set career highs in field-goal percentage (.480), 3-point percentage (.385) and free-throw percentage (.856) last season.
Not only that, the University of Alabama product finally gives the Cavs someone other than James who can break down a defender and create a shot for himself or a teammate.
“Mo’s quickness with the basketball is something we haven’t had since I’ve been here,” fourth-year Cleveland coach Mike Brown said.
Still to be decided is just how much the basketball will be in Williams’ hands. Cleveland’s offense has always run through James in the past and will continue to do so, but Williams should at least be able to take some pressure off the 6-8, 250-pound small forward.
“Watching from afar with LeBron, he handled the ball a lot,” Williams said. “I can take a load off.”
That said, the 25-year-old made it clear he’s equally comfortable playing without the ball. That rarely happened in Milwaukee, where Williams and Michael Redd dominated offensive possessions for the free-wheeling Bucks.
“In Milwaukee, it was a different culture,” Williams said. “I scored a lot. I can’t go into specifics, but I’ll leave you with this: I know what it takes to win.
“I’ll fit in (in Cleveland). We know who’s the leader of our team, as far as the man. I’ll roll with that.”
Williams, who said he’s completely healed from offseason surgery on his thumb, became available when the Bucks acquired small forward Richard Jefferson from New Jersey shortly before the NBA Draft. With Redd and Jefferson requiring a lot of shots, Milwaukee felt a pass-first point guard like Ridnour better suited its needs.
“It’s just two different situations,” Williams said. “It’s two different styles of play. The way I play and the gift I have, (Cleveland) is better suited.”
Williams will likely have to play within the team framework more in Cleveland than he did in Milwaukee, where he often had the green light to do whatever he felt was necessary, but he has no problem with that.
“I’m more than comfortable playing off the ball,” he said. “That’s one of my strengths.”
Defense is not considered to be one of Williams’ better qualities, but a big reason for that is the fact the rather soft Bucks frequently lacked focus at that end of the floor. In Cleveland, the extremely quick Williams should benefit from Brown’s large emphasis on defending.
“We feel he has the ability to impact the game on that end of the floor,” Brown said. “That’s something we’re really excited about.”
For his part, Williams knows that if he doesn’t defend, he’s going to be sitting next to Brown on the bench.
“My actions are going to speak louder than my words,” he said. “You’ve got to want to do it. You’ve got to have the mentality to do it.
“I know what it takes to win. It’s no secret it takes defense.”
It’s also no secret James is happy to have Williams in Cleveland, just as it’s no secret Williams is happy to be a Cav.
“I’m going to play with arguably the best player in America, you really can’t be disappointed,” Williams said.
When asked if calling James the best player in “America” might not be high enough praise, Williams quickly made his first adjustment since joining the Cavs.
“You want to go universe?” he quipped. “(America) was a bad choice of words. Bare with me.”
Tip-ins
Williams averaged 26.0 points, 6.3 rebounds and 9.0 assists as Milwaukee went 3-1 against the Cavs last season. He had 37 points, seven rebounds and six assists in the Bucks’ 105-102 win on Feb. 26, and 29 points, five boards and 13 assists in a 108-98 Milwaukee victory on March 22.
“Now you can quit torching us and torch somebody else,” Brown told Williams.
• Williams, who is entering the second year of a six-year, $51.5 million contract, has been in Vancouver working out with a personal trainer, as has Cleveland center Zydrunas Ilgauskas.
• In addition to getting Ridnour, the Bucks sent small forward Desmond Mason to Oklahoma City. Milwaukee got small forward Adrian Griffin from Oklahoma City and Cleveland’s Damon Jones, whose contract expires at the end of the 2008-09 season.
The Cavs sent Joe Smith, who is also in the final year of his deal, to Oklahoma City to complete the six-player trade.
Quote of the day
“I called the Brewers. I said, ‘Tell CC (Sabathia) I’ve got a house for him.’” — Williams, who has season tickets to Milwaukee’s home games.
Contact Rick Noland at (330) 721-4061 or rickn@ohio.net.
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Filed by Rick Noland | The Chronicle-Telegram August 15th, 2008 in Sports. Popularity: 7% |
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