How Grant Williams will help Mavericks on both ends and his 2 legendary idols

After officially joining the Dallas Mavericks via a three-team sign and trade with the San Antonio Spurs and Boston Celtics, Grant Williams has been vocal regarding his excitement to join this Mavericks roster.

It’s no secret that this Mavericks roster sorely lacked versatility at the wing position, as well as switchable defenders after finishing 38-44 last season with a pitiful (near league-worst) 26th-ranked defensive rating of 118.4 post-All-Star break.

Williams will certainly look to mend some of the issues that caused that.

Grant Williams will fill substantial need for Mavericks after trade

While the Mavericks had a flurry of defensive issues to address this offseason with Dorian Finney-Smith’s departure in the Kyrie Irving trade right before the All-Star break, the most important was restoring the switchable wing defense and versatility Finney-Smith brought to the table.

Couple this with Reggie Bullock’s departure to the Spurs, and the Mavericks would be razor-thin in terms of their wing depth without the addition of Williams.

After being a serviceable rotational wing off the bench behind Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown for the past four seasons in Boston, he will be relied upon more heavily in a more significant role, but the writing is on the wall for him to step up and start for the Mavericks at the wing/forward spot.

In an interview with Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints, Williams spoke glowingly of Charles Barkley and Draymond Green in regard to the dynamism they brought to both sides of the ball as bigger forwards.

"I’ve always looked up to guys who are like me, guys who look to impact winning by doing a little bit of everything. Draymond Green and Charles Barkley are two names that come to mind right away. A guy who has embraced their mold and a 6’6” guy who can guard multiple positions defensively and compete at the highest level possible on the offensive end as well in terms of passing, scoring, you name it."

Grant Williams

How Grant Williams' offense can help Mavericks

Grant Williams likely won’t step in on Day 1 on the Dallas Mavericks with a high level of offensive versatility, especially given he’s coming off of hand surgery in early June, but at the mere age of 24 years old, he’s poised to have an increased role with the Mavericks. His offensive repertoire will be much more valuable and needed than it was in Boston.

Throughout the last four seasons, the commonly ran a five-out offense that tasked role players with hitting their threes and making the right reads when they got the ball.

Williams did an excellent job in that offensive system, especially as a three-point shooter. He's a career 37.9% shooter from distance. But to evolve into the type of player that he idolized, he will have to further expand upon and add new elements to his offensive game.

He will have to expand upon his dribble-drive game, become more savvy with his finishes, potentially develop an in-between game or a floater, and become a more dynamic passing threat out of the post if he wants to reach the level of a Green, for instance.

While this seems far-fetched, Williams is still young, and we've seen role players in the NBA who've been delegated to do the dirty work off the bench blossom once they hit their stride. For instance, look no further at the change in role Bruce Brown transitioned from during his time with the Brooklyn Nets to the Denver Nuggets.

How Grant Williams defense can help Mavericks

Even if Williams takes some time to evolve into the player he wishes to become or never reaches that level, playing in lineups with Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving will undoubtedly give him plenty of easy looks and opportunities to get comfortable within the Dallas offense.

But even the worst-case scenario for Williams and the Mavericks, barring some career-altering injury, wouldn't be that bad. Williams is an excellent spot-up shooter from three and can bring that skill to the team from Day 1.

And don't even get me started on his defense. Williams has proven capable of using his size and lateral quickness to guard one through five at times and has pestered the likes of Joel Embiid and Giannis Antetokounmpo in high-intensity playoff series whilst still maintaining the switchability to chase around smaller guards.

Williams will likely instantly step in as the Mavericks' best defender right off the bat, given his versatility. But make no mistake about it, he will not solve all of the Mavericks' defensive problems, and they are still arguably another wing and veteran rim protector away from true contention.

The Mavs have been haunted by one-dimensionality on offense from the wing position the last few years, so Williams and rookie Olivier-Maxence Prosper will hopefully both look to bring aid to that issue this upcoming season.

But the Mavericks would assuredly like to bolster their wing depth just a little more so they don't over expel those two guys minutes-wise in the coming seasons.

Regardless though, the Mavericks are getting a 24-year-old wing in Williams with plenty of offensive potential and an already-polished defensive game on a pretty team-friendly deal.

How Grant Williams helps Mavericks off the court and an offseason check-in

Grant Williams could be a long-term piece for the Dallas Mavericks, and even outside of the excellent on-court fit, he is a perfect culture guy to have in any locker room. He'll being an amazing mentality and playoff experience to a Mavericks organization that is working hard to add "culture guys" as well as talent.

Look no further than Theo Pinson's role at the end of the bench these past few seasons or the integrity and willingness to give back that Dwight Powell has brought to the community since he's been in Dallas.

When asked about the 'Grant Williams Family Foundation' by Clutch Points reporter Brett Siegel, Williams spoke at length about his off-the-court efforts this summer.

"I’m super excited with the direction of the foundation. We have a great partnership with Quest Nutrition, and they recently went above and beyond by donating $10,000 at our first free basketball camp at West Charlotte High School. Outside of the camp, we’ve also been able to help a lot of people who are not athletes and have not been given the same opportunities in life compared to the normal person. Putting together a bunch of different programs for people of all kinds of backgrounds is just such a blessing."

Grant Williams

Williams is also excited to join his new Dallas teammates, as he is reportedly going to be fully recovered from his hand surgery in early June by the time training camp starts. He will look to thrive in his new role.

During his chat with Siegel, Williams revealed that his hand wrap is off and proceeded to speak about the things he's been working on this summer, despite the limitations his recovery brought.

"The injury has limited my abilities to do certain workouts on the court, but I’ve been trying to work on movement shooting and I’ve been doing a lot of work with navigating screens as a defender. I always want to have a positive mindset, I want to have a positive approach and I want to be a great teammate. I’m coming into a new situation with the Mavericks, so I want to prove right away that I can fit in and be someone everyone in the organization trusts both on and off the court."

Grant Williams

With everything Williams brings to the floor, and away from it, Mavericks fans should be ecstatic to welcome him aboard.