At one time, Deron Williams was considered to be one of the NBA’s top point guards.In fact, the five-time All-Star averaged an elite 17.9 points and 9.1 assists over 35.6 minutes per game over the first six seasons of his career as a member of the Utah Jazz.Since then, however, he has dealt with numerous injuries and has played over 68 regular-season games just one time in the last eight seasons, thus limiting his overall potential.Last season, the struggling Dallas Mavericks placed Williams on waivers after the trade deadline and he cleared them before getting bought out, allowing him to sign with the team of his choosing. Williams decided to chase a ring and join LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers, but simply never fit in.Making appearances in 24 regular-season contests, the backup point guard averaged 7.5 points and 3.6 assists per contest while logging 20.3 minutes per game behind Kyrie Irving. However, he made even less of an impact late in the team’s playoff run.In the Eastern Conference Finals against the Boston Celtics, Williams put up a paltry 4.4 points and 2.2 dimes over 14.6 minutes per contest. He also showed an unwillingness to assert himself in the scoring column, shooting just 8-for-19 over the entire five-game series. In the NBA Finals against the Golden State Warriors, he made even more of a disappearing act, averaging just 1.0 point and 1.2 assists over 12.2 minutes per game in the five-game loss. For the series, he shot an abysmal 2-for-16 and went 0-for-11 combined in the first three games.Now Williams is a free agent, and it seems as though the Cavaliers have moved on from him. To add insult to injury, veteran Cavaliers forward Richard Jefferson dissed Williams badly on his “Road Trippin’” podcast. Speaking to announcer Chris Geeter and ESPN reporters Dave McMenamin and Sarina Morales, here’s what transpired:Richard Jefferson: "When you ask Deron about golf, his eyes light up. When you ask Deron about MMA, his eyes light up."Dave McMenamin: "What about when you talk to him about coming off the bench for the Cavs?"(laughing)Jefferson: "His eyes did not light up. His eyes did not light up."Chris Geeter: "What about when the Warriors saw him coming off the bench?"(laughing)Jefferson: "Their eyes lit up."
That’s just brutal.
This offseason, Cleveland made signing point guard help a major emphasis, adding former NBA MVP Derrick Rose in addition to veteran Jose Calderon. Kay Felder will also be an option in his second NBA season. Despite the fact that Kyrie Irving might be traded in the near future, the team made it pretty clear that Williams will not be returning to the team.
If he somehow does, it seems as though he and Jefferson will need to sit down and address Jefferson’s disrespectful comment.