Charlotte Hornets forward Marvin Williams has had dozens of coaches over 13 NBA seasons, but none could replace his first.
Dad.
Williams’ father, who taught him how to shoot, lives in Charlotte. Often on non-game nights, Williams has his father and his daughter join him at the Hornets’ practice court for some extra shooting, under the watch of the guy who knows that shot as well as anyone could.
“There’s nothing my father can see” said Williams, the Hornets’ starting power forward, who’s gone 13-of-40 from the field in his last six games. “Right now, (the jump shot) doesn’t feel bad and it actually doesn’t look bad. That’s kind of the tricky part.”
Over the Hornets ‘4-5 start, Williams is shooting just 36 percent from the field and 20 percent from 3-point range. His ability to make 3s, which didn’t really happen until three or four seasons into his NBA career, was a major factor in the Hornets signing him to a four-year $54 million contract in the summer of 2016. Williams, who turned 32 in June, still has another $15 million guaranteed via that contract for next season.
“It’ll come,” Williams said of his shooting, after spending an extra half hour on the court after the other starters left. “I have no doubt in my mind.”
Apparently, neither does Hornets coach James Borrego, who dashed any speculation that Williams might lose his starting spot.
“I don’t worry about Marvin.,” Borrego said. “He’s our starting 4-man (power forward) and he’ll stay our starting 4-man.”
A major part of Williams’ value has been his ability to keep the Hornets organized on the court defensively and the veteran presence he provides in the locker room.
Williams said Friday that starting or coming off the bench isn’t important to him at this late stage of his career, but he believes he still provides plenty.
“I feel like the team plays well when I’m out there. I feel it has always played fairly well when I’m out there,” said Williams, in his fifth season with the Hornets. “I feel like I bring more than 3-pointers to the basketball team.”
That’s true. But a wide variety of players presenting a 3-point threat is a big part of how Borrego wants to play, particularly from the baseline, where Williams is often stationed on offense.
So the night sessions with dad will surely happen a lot these days.
“My father is the one who taught me to shoot (growing up in Washington), so he is the one who is going to be able to see when something is not right. When something doesn’t look right to him, we come and fix it,” Williams said.
“Sometimes it’s something very, very minor, and you can’t feel it. You don’t feel it when you’re practicing or in games, but it’s something that he sees.”
Before the fall
The Hornets have a track record of losing a lot of close games, so Thursday’s 111-107 fall to the Oklahoma City Thunder was nothing new. The Hornets are 1-4 this season in games decided by four points or less this season.
In reviewing that game, Borrego sounded more concerned with how his team gave up the lead (they were up 66-47 midway through the third quarter) than how they handled the last two minutes.
“When (the lead) got down to 10 or 11, build it back up to 15. That had nothing to do with closing the game,” Borrego said after practice. “The thing that bothered me was how we closed the third quarter.”
Specifically, the Hornets went scoreless for six consecutive possessions immediately following that 19-point lead. That 3-minute, 44-second span included eight missed shots and two turnovers.
Counter-measures
Hornets star point guard Kemba Walker has scored 19 and 21 points in his last two games. That’s strong for most NBA players, but it’s about 10 points per game off his prior productivity this season.
Teams are over-playing Walker defensively to the extreme of late, and the Hornets spend a lot of their video reviews addressing counter-measures.
“Partly that’s on Kemba and partly that’s on everybody else to have proper spacing, and when they get the ball go attack,” Borrego said.
“You can’t take away everything (defensively); you put two guys on the ball up past the 3-point line and someone’s open. You can’t guard everything. We’ve got to make them pay for it.”
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