What Grant Williams said about his Celtics’ future and recovery from hand surgery
"If they decide to keep me and bring me back, of course I’m going to come back and be excited, happy, ready to play..."
Grant Williams said he’d be happy to return to the Celtics if Boston wants him.
The addition of Kristaps Porzingis complicates things a bit for Williams, who will become a restricted free agent at the end of the week.
But, he seemed at least open to hearing out the Celtics while speaking to reporters Tuesday at a Fanatics event in Foxborough.
“Whatever happens,” Williams said. “I have not much control on this because I allowed my agents and everybody else to focus on that because my whole focus and goal has always been winning. Team success always been most important thing. Brad [Stevens] and those guys, if they decide to keep me and bring me back, of course I’m going to come back and be excited, happy, ready to play for the Celtics.”
The Celtics have to decide if Williams fits with their reconstructed roster. They have the ability to match any offer sheet that Williams signs with another team and keep him.
But, they’ll likely have a lot of money tied up in Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and Porzingis going forward. There’s also the question of how Porzingis’ addition would affect Williams’ minutes with one more big in the rotation, along with Rob Williams and Al Horford.
Adam Himmelsbach, of The Boston Globe, reported that the Porzingis trade likely means the end of Williams’ time in Boston. The Celtics could explore sign and trade options for Williams in hopes of getting compensation for him.
Williams said that the NBA’s new collective bargaining agreement brings parity to the league, but also changes the financial landscape in a way that could make it tougher to stay.
“If something else happens, I have to transition,” Williams said. “For me, my outlook has always been that I want to make sure that, wherever I am, to impact the success of winning and making sure that I’m there for the players that are around me, and focus on the team first. Whatever happens, this free agency will be that.”
Williams said he’s feeling “great” after offseason surgery on his left hand and expects to be ready for training camp.
“Physically, I’m feeling really, really good. I had surgery on the hand after the season, did it in March, played through it the whole season then I re-did something after Game 6, and I was like ‘we’ve got make sure we get this after the season’. They recommended the surgery. It’s the first surgery of my life, so I was very, very anxious and weird, but it’s been an easy recovery.”
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