Lou Williams
Louis Williams | |
|---|---|
| Born | October 27, 1986 Memphis, Tennessee, U.S. |
| Occupation | Professional basketball player (retired) |
| Years active | 2005–2021 |
| Known for | NBA Sixth Man of the Year (3 times), all-time leader in points scored off the bench in NBA history |
Louis Tyrone Williams (born October 27, 1986) is a retired American professional basketball athlete. Selected straight from high school by the Philadelphia 76ers with the 45th pick in the 2005 NBA draft, he earned the NBA Sixth Man of the Year honor three times. As of March 2019, Williams holds the record for the highest number of points scored coming off the bench in NBA history, and by February 2022, he also leads in most career games played as a reserve.
Williams spent seven years with Philadelphia before joining the Atlanta Hawks in 2012, where he played for two seasons. In 2014, he was traded to the Toronto Raptors, then signed with the Los Angeles Lakers from 2015 until midway through the 2016–17 NBA season, when he was traded to the Houston Rockets. Following that season, Williams was dealt to the Los Angeles Clippers in 2017 and eventually made a return to the Hawks in 2021.
High school career
Born in Memphis, Tennessee, Williams relocated to Atlanta during his teenage years. He competed at Snellville's South Gwinnett High School under Coach Roger Fleetwood, where he earned four All-State honors and was named Georgia's "Mr. Basketball" in both his junior and senior years. Williams guided South Gwinnett to a 5A Georgia State Championship during his junior season. By graduation, he had been awarded the Naismith Prep Player of the Year, selected as a McDonald's All-American, and included on the first-team Parade All-American. Additionally, he took part in prestigious events like the Nike Hoop Summit and Jordan Brand Classic.
Ranked as a five-star recruit by Rivals.com, Williams was regarded as the nation's top shooting guard and third-best overall player in 2005. Alongside teammate Mike Mercer, he initially committed to play for the University of Georgia under coach Dennis Felton, but ultimately entered the 2005 NBA draft. He concluded his high school career as Georgia’s all-time leading scorer.
Philadelphia 76ers (2005–2012)
Williams was chosen with the 45th overall pick in the second round by the Philadelphia 76ers. In his debut season, he participated in over thirty games, averaging 1.9 points and 0.3 assists per contest.
In November 2006, Williams was assigned to the Fort Worth Flyers of the NBA Development League. Following impressive performances and amid trade speculation involving Allen Iverson, he was recalled to Philadelphia in December 2006.
During the 2007–08 campaign, Williams posted averages of 11.3 points, 3.2 assists, and 2.0 rebounds per game. He secured a five-year restricted free agent deal worth $25 million to continue with the franchise.
In the 2011 Eastern Conference Playoffs, Williams delivered a crucial go-ahead three-pointer in Game 4 against the Miami Heat, leading to an 86–82 victory; however, Philadelphia ultimately fell in five games.
During the lockout-shortened 2011–12 season, Williams led all Sixers scorers with an average of 14.9 points per game despite not starting any contests. He finished second in voting for the esteemed NBA Sixth Man of the Year Award.
Atlanta Hawks (2012–2014)
Williams joined the Atlanta Hawks on July 12, 2012. His season was cut short on January 18, 2013, when he suffered an ACL tear during a game against the Brooklyn Nets. After missing the beginning of the 2013–14 season while recuperating, he made his return on November 20, 2013, contributing 6 points off the bench. He completed that season with averages of 10.4 points, 3.5 assists, and 2.1 rebounds per game.
Toronto Raptors (2014–2015)
On June 30, 2014, Williams was traded to the Toronto Raptors in a deal that included the draft rights to Lucas Nogueira, in exchange for John Salmons and a second-round pick in 2015. He achieved a then career-best performance on November 22, 2014, scoring 36 points in a victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers. Williams earned the distinction of being the first Raptors player to receive the NBA Sixth Man of the Year award in 2015.
Los Angeles Lakers (2015–2017)
Williams signed a three-year contract worth $21 million with the Los Angeles Lakers on July 9, 2015. He made his debut on October 28, 2015, tallying 21 points coming off the bench. On January 3, 2016, he recorded a season-high of 30 points and shortly after, on January 8, he set a new personal best by scoring 44 points in a loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder.
On December 3, 2016, Williams scored a season-high of 40 points off the bench—the highest point total by an opposing reserve player against Memphis—and followed with a 38-point effort two days later versus the Utah Jazz. This marked his first instance of consecutive games scoring over 30 points in his NBA tenure. During early December, across four games, he amassed a total of 137 points—the greatest four-game scoring output by an NBA reserve since records began in 1970.
Houston Rockets (2017)
Williams was traded to the Houston Rockets on February 23, 2017, in exchange for Corey Brewer and a first-round pick in the 2017 draft. That same evening, he made his Rockets debut by scoring 27 points including seven three-pointers off the bench in a commanding 129–99 win against the New Orleans Pelicans. On March 15, he posted a 30-point performance during a dominant 139–100 victory over his former team, the Lakers.
2017–18 season
On June 28, 2017, Williams was part of a multi-player trade where the Los Angeles Clippers acquired him along with Patrick Beverley, Sam Dekker, Montrezl Harrell, Darrun Hilliard, DeAndre Liggins, Kyle Wiltjer, and a first-round pick in 2018 from the Rockets in exchange for Chris Paul. Williams scored a season-best 42 points on November 27 during a narrow 120–115 win over the Los Angeles Lakers. On December 9, he delivered a clutch go-ahead pull-up three-pointer with just 1.2 seconds left and finished with 35 points to lead an impressive bench effort in a tight 113–112 victory against the Washington Wizards. On December 31, he recorded another strong performance with 40 points off the bench in a win over the Charlotte Hornets, earning him Western Conference Player of the Week honors for December 25–31.
Williams reached a career-high scoring mark of 50 points on January 10, 2018—including an explosive third quarter with 27 points—in a decisive 125–106 win versus the Golden State Warriors. He shot efficiently at 16-for-27 from the field with eight three-pointers and was perfect from the free-throw line with all ten attempts. This scoring output was the highest single-game total by any Clipper since Charles Smith’s record-setting performance of December 1990. For his efforts during January 8–14, he received Western Conference Player of the Week recognition again.
On January 20, Williams achieved an unprecedented stat line with 31 points, a franchise-record ten steals, and seven assists in a loss to the Utah Jazz, becoming the first NBA player since steals were officially tracked to reach those numbers in one game. Six days later on January 26, he posted another strong showing with 40 points and equaled his season high by dishing out ten assists during a victory over the Memphis Grizzlies. Williams secured a multi-year contract extension with the Clippers on February 7. Later that month on February 23, he scored 35 points to help defeat the Phoenix Suns.
During this season, Williams averaged career-best numbers with 22.6 points per game, alongside averages of 5.3 assists and nearly 33 minutes played each contest. Leading all NBA reserves in scoring during his thirteenth season in the league, he earned his second NBA Sixth Man of the Year Award.
2018–19 season
On November 2, 2018, Williams delivered 23 of his game-leading 28 points in the second half, propelling the Clippers to a 120–95 victory over the Orlando Magic. The team started the season with a strong 17–9 record before Williams sustained a right hamstring injury. During his absence spanning four games, the Clippers experienced a losing streak. Upon his return on December 20, he contributed 13 of his 26 points in the final quarter, helping secure a 125–121 win against the Dallas Mavericks. Later that month, on December 28, Williams achieved a season-best 36 points in a 118–107 triumph over the Lakers.
On January 25, 2019, Williams notched his inaugural career triple-double by recording 31 points, 10 assists, and 10 rebounds in a 106–101 victory over the Chicago Bulls, making him one of only two NBA players to register a 30-point triple-double off the bench. This achievement occurred during his 904th career game, ranking as one of the latest first triple-doubles in NBA history. On February 2, he tallied 39 points to help rally the Clippers from a 25-point deficit to defeat the Detroit Pistons 111–101. He then set a new season high with 45 points off the bench on February 11, despite a loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Williams made history on February 13 by posting 30 points and 10 assists in just 22 minutes during a commanding 134–107 win over the Suns, marking the first instance in NBA history for such statistics in under 23 minutes. On March 8, he scored 40 points against the Oklahoma City Thunder, surpassing Jamal Crawford for second place in all-time NBA career points scored off the bench. This also marked his 28th game with at least 30 points coming off the bench, breaking Ricky Pierce's previous record. Three days later, Williams became the NBA’s all-time leader in points off the bench by scoring 34 against the Boston Celtics, overtaking Dell Curry. On March 17, he sank a buzzer-beating three-pointer to clinch a narrow 119–116 victory over the Brooklyn Nets.
During the playoffs on April 15, Williams contributed an impressive 36 points and added 11 assists as the Clippers erased a historic 31-point deficit to tie their first-round series at one game apiece against the Warriors. He became only the second reserve player in NBA history to record at least 30 points and 10 assists in a playoff game. In Game 5, he delivered another pivotal performance with 33 points and 10 assists leading to an essential win. Despite these efforts, Los Angeles fell short in Game 6 and were eliminated from contention. At season’s end, Williams earned the NBA Sixth Man of the Year, joining Jamal Crawford as one of just two players to win this award three times.
2019–20 season
Following a breach of NBA Bubble protocols, Williams missed the initial two seeding games of the 2019–20 campaign due to quarantine requirements. Throughout the 2020 NBA playoffs, he averaged 12.8 points and 4.2 assists as the Clippers ultimately lost a commanding 3–1 series lead to the Denver Nuggets in seven games during the Western Conference semifinals.
2020–21 season
On February 14, 2021, Williams recorded season-best figures with 30 points and 10 assists in a decisive 128–111 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Return to Atlanta (2021–2022)
On March 25, 2021, Williams was traded back to his hometown team, the Atlanta Hawks, in a deal that included two second-round draft selections and cash considerations in exchange for Rajon Rondo. During this stint with Atlanta, he advanced to the Conference Finals for the first time in his career, participating in a personal best of 18 playoff contests. He secured a new contract with the Hawks on August 6, 2021.
Retirement
Williams declared his retirement from professional basketball on June 18, 2023, wrapping up a distinguished 17-year tenure in the NBA. He holds the league's all-time record for the highest number of points scored as a reserve player, totaling 13,396.
Personal life
Williams is the son of Willie Louis Williams and Janice Faulkner and has three siblings. He is a father of three children and is recognized for his close friendship with rapper Bow Wow. Additionally, Williams has ventured into music by recording rap songs and appeared on Meek Mill's track "I Want It All."
He organizes an annual summer basketball camp at South Gwinnett High School as a way to give back to his community. In December 2011, his prominence as an NBA player reportedly helped thwart an armed robbery attempt in Philadelphia.
In 2014, Williams gained public attention for simultaneously dating two women; by 2018, his relationship with Ashley Henderson had ended.
Canadian artist Drake mentioned Williams in the song "6 Man" from the mixtape If You're Reading This It's Too Late, emphasizing both his role as a sixth man and aspects of his personal life. This track was played during Williams' trophy ceremony and featured prominently in an OVO Raptors apparel campaign.
In July 2020, Williams became subject to an NBA investigation after attending a funeral viewing followed by dining at Magic City gentlemen’s club during an authorized absence from the NBA bubble quarantine. This incident resulted in extended quarantine protocols for him.
Subsequent to a podcast interview addressing this episode, Williams acquired the nickname "Lemon Pepper Lou," inspired by a popular seasoning served at Magic City.
Regular season
2016–17 Los Angeles Lakers season L.A.Lakers 2016–17 Houston Rockets season Houston 2017–18 Los Angeles Clippers season L.A.Clippers 2018–19 Los Angeles Clippers season L.A.Clippers | 75 | 1 | 26,6 | 425 | 361 | 876 | 3,0 | 5,4 | ,8 | ,1 | 20,0 2019–20 Los Angeles Clippers season L.A.Clippers 2020–21 Los Angeles Clippers season L.A.Clippers 2020–21 Atlanta Hawks season Atlanta 24 1 21,0 389 444 870 2,1 3,4 ,3 ,1 10,0 2021–22 Atlanta Hawks season Atlanta 56 0 14,3 391 363 859 1,6 1,9 ,5 ,1 6,3| Season | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Philadelphia | 30 | 0 | 4.8 | .442 | .222 | .615 | .6 | .3 | .2 | .0 | 1.9 | |
| Philadelphia | 61 | 0 | 11.3 | .441 | .324 | .696 | 1.1 | 1.8 | .4 | .0 | 4.3 | |
| Philadelphia | 80 | 0 | 23.3 | .424 | .359 | .783 | 2.1 | 3.2 | 1.0 | .2 | 11.5 | |
| Philadelphia | 81 | 0 | 23.7 | .398 | .286 | .790 | 2.0 | 3.0 | 1.0 | .2 | 12.8 | |
| Philadelphia | 64 | 38 | 29.9 | .470 | .340 | .824 | 2.9 | 4.2 | 1.3 | .2 | 14.0 | |
| Philadelphia | 75 | 0 | 23.3 | .406 | .348 | .823 | 2.0 | 3.4 | .6 | .2 | 13.7 | |
| Philadelphia | 64 | 0 | 26.3 | .407 | .362 | .812 | 2.4 | 3.5 | .8 | .3 | 14.9 | |
| Atlanta | 39 | 9 | 28.7 | .422 | .367 | .868 | 2.1 | 3.6 | 1.1 | .3 | 14.1 | |
| Atlanta | 60 | 7 | 24.1 | .400 | .342 | .849 | 2.1 | 3.5 | .8 | .1 | 10.4 | |
| Toronto | 80 | 0 | 25.2 | .404 | .340 | .861 | 1.9 | 2.1 | 1.1 | .1 | 15.5 | |
| L.A. Lakers | 67 | 35 | 28.5 | .408 | .344 | .830 | 2.5 | 2.5 | .9 | .3 | 15.3 | |
|
58 |1 |24.2 | .444 | .385 | .884 |2.3 |3.2 |1.1 | .2 |18.6 | ||||||||||||
|
23 |0 |25.7 | .385 | .315 | .867 |3.0 |2.4 | .7 | .4 |14.9 | ||||||||||||
|
79 19 32.8 .435 .359 .880 .25 .5 .11 .02' |
.226 | |||||||||||
|
65 |
8 |
28,7 |
418 |
352 |
861 |
3,1 |
5,6 |
,7 |
,2 |
18,2 | ||
|
42 |
3 |
21,9 |
421 |
378 |
866 |
2,1 |
3,4 |
,9 |
,1 |
12,1 |
Career totals encompass participation in over eleven hundred games with an average playing time near twenty-four minutes per contest; shooting percentages hover around forty-two percent field goals and thirty-five percent from beyond the arc; scoring averages approach fourteen points per game while assists and rebounds each exceed two per game.
Playoffs
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 NBA playoffs | 2007–08 Philadelphia 76ers season | 6 | 0 | 22.5 | 400 | 222 | 733 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 12 |
| 2009 NBA playoffs | 2008–09 Philadelphia 76ers season | 6 | 0 | 24.8 | 412 | 375 | 667 | 2.5 | 2.8 | 0.5 | .2 | 9.
7 |
| 2011 NBA playoffs | 2010–11 Philadelphia 76ers season | '5' | '0' | 26' | 327' | 300' | 737' | 16' | 30' | 10' | '0' | 10.
8 |
| '2012 NBA playoffs'|'style='text-align:left;'|'2011–12 Philadelphia 76ers season'|'13' | '0' | 27.'5' | '352' | '167' | '788' | '21' | '30' | '10' | '0' | 11.'5' | ||
| '2014 NBA playoffs'|'style='text-align:left;'|'2013–14 Atlanta Hawks season'|'7' | '0' | 19.'0' | '380' | '313' | '938' | '23' | '11' | '10' | '.1' | 8.'3' | ||
| '2015 NBA playoffs'|'style='text-align:left;'|'2014–15 Toronto Raptors season'|'4' | '0' | 25.'5' | 314' | 190' | 833' | 18' | 13' | .15 | '.0' | 12.'8' | ||
| '2017 NBA playoffs'|'style='text-align:left;'|'2016–17 Houston Rockets season'|'11' | '0' | 24.'7' | 424' | 308' | 897' | 27' | 13' | 09' | 01' | 12.'5' | ||
| '2019 NBA playoffs'|'style='text-align:left;'|'2018–19 Los Angeles Clippers season'|'6' | '0'29.'3433333829287.708.0221.7 |
Career playoff aggregates include appearances in eighty-nine games with an average of twenty-three minutes on court per game; shooting percentages stand at approximately forty percent from the field and twenty-seven percent from three-point range; free throw accuracy reaches eighty-two percent; rebounds and assists average over two per contest each; scoring averages eleven point four per game overall.