According to reports, the Milwaukee Bucks are planning on signing veteran forward Marvin Williams following his buyout from the Charlotte Hornets.
The Milwaukee Bucks may have stood pat ahead of the trade deadline Thursday, but they’ve already struck the growing buyout market in the aftermath of this year’s trade season.
First reported by The Athletic’s Shams Charania, the Bucks are planning to add veteran forward Marvin Williams once he completes his buyout with the Charlotte Hornets.
Forward Marvin Williams is planning to sign with the Milwaukee Bucks after contract buyout from Charlotte, league sources tell @TheAthleticNBA @Stadium.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) February 8, 2020
Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reported earlier Friday night that the Hornets and Williams were negotiating a buyout for the 33-year-old to latch on to a contender ahead of the playoffs this year.
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As of this writing, it’s not yet known who the Bucks will waive as a corresponding move to bring in Williams on their roster.
The 15-year veteran comes to Milwaukee after playing a bit role with the Hornets this season and seeing the floor for the fewest amount of minutes for his career.
In his 41 appearances this season, Williams is averaging a career-low 6.7 points on .448/.376/.860 shooting splits, along with 2.7 rebounds and 1.0 assists over 19.7 minutes per contest.
Despite the modest production, Williams has really rebounded shooting the ball after taking a step back in that regard. That can be seen in his true shooting percentage jumping from 54.8 percent last season to 59.3 percent in his limited role.
And as a career 36.2 percent 3-point shooter, Williams’ floor spacing off the ball will be the biggest asset he will bring to the Bucks on the offensive end and as a whole, potentially. This season, Williams has connected on 38.4 percent of his 99 catch-and-shoot 3-point attempts, per NBA.com/stats.
Defensively, Williams’ age and declining athleticism have firmly made him a stretch-4 and he’s even slotted up as a small ball center under Hornets head coach James Borrego. And as Jeff Siegel over at Early Bird Rights detailed a couple of weeks ago, Williams’ intelligence and veteran know-how carries him on that end of the floor, which could be of good use for Bucks head coach Mike Budenholzer.
By all accounts, Williams is an exceptional locker room presence, which will keep with the high character and culture the Bucks have built under Budenholzer and general manager, Jon Horst.
Last but certainly not least, this is kind of a full circle moment for the North Carolina product as the Bucks debated selecting Williams with the first overall pick in the 2005 NBA Draft before ultimately tabbing center Andrew Bogut with the selection.
When the news regarding who the Bucks will waive comes through the wire, we’ll have you covered over here at Behind the Buck Pass. But for now, it’s time to welcome Marvin to Milwaukee!