Marvin Williams backdoored his way into a highly productive NBA career after long playing under the specter of being drafted ahead of Deron Williams and Chris Paul for a Hawks’ team that needed a point guard. Williams’ productivity and versatility over the past two seasons with the Charlotte Hornets was rewarded with a four-year, $54.5 million deal. The late career surge of Williams demonstrates how we so often aren’t necessarily wrong on the talent of players in the draft but that some just aren’t transcendent enough not to breakthrough unless they are in the right situation and also develop certain parts of their game. 

Williams was always destined for this combo forward role as soon as he worked on his perimeter shot and the NBA evolved to match his physical gifts. Redrafting the 2005 class becomes even more complicated now if they were walking into today’s game even with what we know now about them after more than a decade in the league.

Williams ranked 36th in the NBA in Real Plus Minus, playing smart, sound two-way basketball with tremendous versatility at either forward spot. The Hornets’ offense was 6.8 points per 100 possessions better with Williams on the floor.

Williams scored 1.16 points per possession on 38 post-ups, which ranked second in the entire NBA behind Kevin Durant amongst players with at least 30 attempts. Williams also is adept in handoffs.

Williams shot 40.2 percent on 378 three-point attempts, which is a bit of a career outlier and he’s more of a still very good 35 or 36 percent shooter.

The best non-Warriors’ lineup in the NBA was Lin, Kemba Walker, Nicolas Batum, Marvin Williams and Al Jefferson, which had a net rating of 33.0 for the season.

At a point in his career arc where his minutes will need to be reduced to maintain his productivity, Williams will be making starter money for the first four seasons of his thirties. Williams averaged 28.9 minutes per game, which was the most he’s averaged since 10-11. With Michael Kidd-Gilchrist hopefully coming back from a series of injuries last season, the Hornets can use him to decrease his minutes.

Williams can defend just about any forward in the game, sliding comfortably between wings and 4’s. Williams often took the most difficult wing assignments this past season with Kidd-Gilchrist out and held up well in those situations.

The Hornets have a really exciting core in Walker, Batum, Kidd-Gilchrist and Williams and they’re all signed through at least 2019. Steve Clifford is a tremendous coach and they’re just the right fit at center away from going on a deep playoff run.

Grade for Hornets: A

Williams has one of the best work ethics in the NBA as he’s taken excellent care of his body and worked on his perimeter shot to be a knockdown guy despite coming into the NBA without that skill at all. Williams went 25-for-108 (23.1 percent) on three-pointers over his first three seasons in the NBA.

Williams’ niche within the Hornets is perfectly suited to his game and he’ll remain a key part of a highly competitive team for the life of his contract. Williams took a little bit less money in remaining with the Hornets, which is always a clear signal of how much a player likes his situation. 

Grade for Marvin Williams: A