Grant Williams Reflects on 'Unprofessional' 2 Weeks He Had During Last Celtics Season

It appears Grant Williams had a tough ending to his career with the Boston Celtics.

The 24-year-old, who spent the first four years of his career in Boston before agreeing to a sign-and-trade with the Dallas Mavericks this summer, played a key role for the Celtics off the bench during the 2022-23 season.

Williams averaged 8.1 points, 4.6 rebounds and 1.7 assists in 79 games while shooting 45.4 percent from the floor and 39.5 percent from deep in 25.9 minutes per night. He helped the Celtics lock up the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference entering the postseason, but he was not rewarded for his efforts.

Williams saw significantly less playing time in the playoffs as he fell out of Joe Mazzulla's rotation. In 15 playoff games, he averaged 5.1 points, 2.2 rebounds and 1.2 assists while shooting 47.2 percent from the floor and 45 percent from deep in 17.7 minutes per night.

The lack of postseason playing time frustrated Williams, and he opened up about that frustration while speaking with Adam Himmelsbach of the Boston Globe.

"I had a two-week span of being unprofessional, which I look back on and I'm disappointed in myself with," Williams said. "I had to be able to realize that being professional isn't just about when you're having success. It's also about your darkest days."

Now in Dallas, Williams figures to play a key role for the Mavericks alongside Luka Dončić, Kyrie Irving and Tim Hardaway Jr.

He'll likely see more playing time than he did Boston, and it'll be an opportunity to prove he was worth the $54 million deal the Celtics wouldn't give him.