Milwaukee Bucks: Marvin Williams speaks on adapting to new home

New Milwaukee Bucks forward Marvin Williams recently spoke to the Charlotte Observer on adjusting to his new team and the process and events that led to his buyout from the Charlotte Hornets last month.

Sunday afternoon will be a special one for relatively new Milwaukee Bucks forward Marvin Williams as he’s set to take on his former team, the Charlotte Hornets, for the first time since joining the Bucks last month.

Having spent five and a half seasons in the Queen City, Williams developed the second act of his 15-year career while a member of the Hornets as he developed into a quality stretch-4 and subsequently earned a nice payday during the cap explosion that was the summer of 2016.

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As the Hornets have failed to make the postseason since the 2015-16 season, the team accelerated Williams’ departure to open up buyout talks with him and let him latch on to a contender like the Bucks.

Recently speaking with Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer, Williams talked about his first impressions joining the Bucks and reflected on his time in Charlotte where he has long-standing ties dating back to his time at the University of North Carolina.

With this being the first time he has switched teams mid-season throughout his career, Williams talked about the unusual challenges of trying to settle in a new home for his family while the game has been a constant as he acclimates with his new teammates and surroundings:

"“My family is up here now and we’ve finally found a place to stay,” Williams said Thursday in a phone interview before Sunday’s Hornets-Bucks game at Spectrum Center. “The easiest thing is actually the basketball aspect. I’m in a new city meeting new people. All new teammates. Once I get out there on the court, it’s still all basketball.”“You don’t have to learn new people on defense,” Williams said. “I’m still learning the plays and learning (new teammates’) tendencies: ‘Should I wait a little longer (before moving)? Does he like a little more time here?”"

Perhaps the juiciest details from Williams’ interview with Bonnell related to the teams that Williams identified as landing spots as he and his agent negotiated a buyout with the Hornets before the Bucks relayed their interest in bringing in the 33-year-old:

"“Williams said he was intrigued by three Eastern Conference contenders: The Bucks, the Toronto Raptors and the Boston Celtics. Milwaukee — with the best record in the NBA at 50-8 through Thursday — expressed immediate interest when Williams and his agent started investigating a buyout on part of his $14 million salary.”"

Of course, we knew Williams’ former All-Star teammate, Kemba Walker, was hoping for a reunion with Williams in Boston, but the prospect of Williams looking to the Great White North would have been an unsettling reality for the Bucks, had they not been successful in their pursuit to add the veteran forward.

In the end, the rich got richer and Bucks head coach Mike Budenholzer has immediately integrated Williams within their rotation as he’s shaping up to be the Bucks’ go-to forward off the bench behind superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo.

Lastly, Williams reflected on his time with the Hornets and took out a full page ad in the Observer to thank fans for their gratitude and support of the team once he left for Milwaukee. Here’s an excerpt of that message from Williams to the Charlotte faithful:

"“From Day 1 (Hornets fans) showed nothing but love for me,” Williams said.“You hear people say you always want to leave something in better shape than when you got it. I think (the Hornets were) in bad shape when I got there. I want people to remember I tried to do the right things when I was there.“I want the fans to know I always tried to play as hard as I can, and tried to represent them when I was there. I wanted my teammates to know I always had their back when I was there. I wanted my coaches to know that, whether I had a torn ligament in my foot or I was not feeling good or had a family issue at home, I was going to lace them up for them. That’s just who I am.”"

As if it didn’t come across in the first few weeks since Williams joined the Bucks, the Washington native’s good nature shows both on and off the court.