Chaz Williams

Chaz Calvaron Williams (born April 6, 1991) is an American professional basketball player for Njarðvík of the Úrvalsdeild karla. He played college basketball for University of Massachusetts (UMass) and was considered one of the top point guards in the nation for the 2013–14 season.

Chaz Williams
Njarðvík
PositionPoint guard
LeagueÚrvalsdeild karla
Personal information
Born (1991-04-06) April 6, 1991
NationalityAmerican
Listed height5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Listed weight175 lb (79 kg)
Career information
High schoolBishop Ford (Brooklyn, New York)
College
NBA draft2014: undrafted
Playing career2014–present
Career history
2014Eskişehir Basket
2015Maine Red Claws
2015Delaware 87ers
2016Geneva Lions
2017Korihait
2018Þór Þorlákshöfn
2019Wilki Morskie Szczecin
2019–2020Njarðvík
2020–2021Pelister
2021–2022Kozuv
2022–2023Aix Maurienne Savoie Basket
2023Club Ourense Baloncesto
2023–presentNjarðvík
Career highlights and awards
  • 3× First-team All-Atlantic 10 (2012–2014)
  • CAA All-Freshman team (2010)

College career

Williams was a two-time conference player of the year at Bishop Ford High School in Brooklyn, New York. He committed to nearby Hofstra University and moved quickly into the starting lineup. He averaged 9.8 points and 4.2 assists per game and was named to the Colonial Athletic Association All-Freshman team.[1] Following an offseason which saw head coach Tom Pecora leave Hofstra, Williams transferred to UMass.[2]

After sitting out the 2010–11 season as a transfer, Williams led the Minutemen to a 25 win season in 2011–12. He averaged 16.9 points, 6.2 assists, 2.2 steals and 4.4 rebounds per game and was named first team All-Atlantic 10 Conference. As a junior, he repeated on the All-Atlantic 10 team after averaging 15.5 and 7.3 assists per game.[1] However, UMass failed to make the NCAA Tournament for the second straight year. Throughout his UMass career, Williams helped the Minutemen defeat some national ranked teams. This included beating VCU, Dayton, and George Washington.

In the offseason, Williams considered declaring for the 2013 NBA draft. After reviewing information gathered by his coach Derek Kellogg indicating he would likely be a second round pick, he decided to return for his final season and try to make the NCAA Tournament for the first time.[2]

At the beginning of his senior season, Williams was named to the watch lists for the Naismith Player of the Year Award, the Bob Cousy Award for best point guard in the nation and was a preseason All-Atlantic 10 pick.[3] On February 13, 2014, he was named one of the 30 finalists for Naismith College Player of the Year.[4] He led UMass to a #6 seed in the 2014 NCAA Tournament and is ranked 23rd all-time in career assists in NCAA history.

Professional career

Following graduation, Williams went undrafted in the 2014 NBA draft. On August 9, 2014, he signed with Olin Edirne of the Turkish Basketball League.[5] He parted ways with Olin on November 14, 2014 after appearing in just five games.[6]

On February 20, 2015, he was acquired by the Maine Red Claws of the NBA Development League.[7] On March 8, he was waived by the Red Claws after appearing in just three games.[8] On March 20 he was acquired by the Delaware 87ers.[9]

On July 2, 2017 he signed with Korihait of the Finnish Korisliiga.[10] He left the club on November 23, 2017. In 11 games, Williams averaged 12.6 points and 3.8 assists per game.[11]

On January 24, 2018, Williams signed with Þór Þorlákshöfn of the Icelandic Úrvalsdeild karla.[12] In 8 games he averaged 15.8 points, 4.8 assists and 2.9 steals per game.[13] In February 2019, Williams signed with Wilki Morskie Szczecin of the Polish Basketball League.[13]

On November 6, 2019, Williams returned to Iceland and signed with Njarðvík where he met his old coach from Þór Þorlákshöfn, Einar Árni Jóhannsson.[14] For the first four games, he came of the bench and split his playing time with fellow American Wayne Martin Jr.[15] Due to his performance, Njarðvík allowed Martin to sign with Jämtland Basket in Sweden and moved Williams to the starting lineup.[16] On January 16, 2020, he scored a season high 36 point against Reykjanesbær rivals Keflavík.[17] Williams averaged 20 points, 4.9 rebounds, 7.5 assists, and 2.3 steals per game. On August 22, he signed with Pelister of the Macedonian First League.[18] Williams averaged 19.4 points, 7.8 assists, 4.6 rebounds, and 1.8 steals per game. On January 6, 2022, he signed with AMSB of the LNB Pro B.[19]

In May 2023, Williams returned to Iceland and signed back with Njarðvík.[20]

References
  1. "Chaz Williams UMass athletic bio". UMass Minutemen. Archived from the original on February 3, 2014. Retrieved January 20, 2014.
  2. Benbow, Julian (December 20, 2013). "Chaz Williams has been deciding factor for UMass basketball". Boston Globe. Retrieved January 20, 2014.
  3. Malone, Daniel (November 24, 2013). "UMass PG Chaz Williams named to Naismith Award watch list". The Republican. Retrieved January 20, 2014.
  4. "2013-14 Men's Naismith Trophy Midseason 30". Naismith Awards. February 13, 2014. Archived from the original on February 22, 2014. Retrieved February 14, 2014.
  5. "Edirne lands rookie point guard Chaz Williams". Sportando.com. August 9, 2014. Archived from the original on August 9, 2014. Retrieved August 9, 2014.
  6. "Chaz Williams parts ways with Eskisehir Basket". Archived from the original on 2015-04-02. Retrieved 2015-03-09.
  7. "Frazier Signs 2nd 10-Day With 76ers". Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2015-03-06.
  8. Red Claws Add Omar Reed
  9. NBA D-League 2014-15 Transactions Archived June 26, 2015, at the Wayback Machine
  10. Korihait kiinnitti ensimmäiset jenkkivahvistuksensa
  11. "Chaz Williams stats". basket.fi (in Finnish). Retrieved 24 January 2018.
  12. "Þórsarar semja við Chaz Williams". Hafnarfréttir (in Icelandic). 24 January 2018. Retrieved 24 January 2018.
  13. "King Szczecin will test Chaz Williams, ex Thor Thorl". Eurobasket.com. 7 February 2019. Retrieved 25 February 2019.
  14. Ingvi Þór Sæmundsson (6 November 2019). "Njarðvík bætir við sig Bandaríkjamanni sem þjálfarinn þekkir vel". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 6 November 2019.
  15. Anton Ingi Leifsson (10 November 2019). "Njarðvík með tvo Bandaríkjamenn: "Eru þeir ekki bara að fresta því óumflýjanlega?"". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 26 January 2020.
  16. Arnar Geir Halldórsson (27 December 2019). "Martin farinn frá Njarðvík". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 26 January 2020.
  17. Skúli B. Sigurðsson (16 January 2020). "Margt hefði getað farið betur hjá okkur". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic).
  18. "Chaz Williams (ex Njardvik) is a newcomer at Pelister Bitola". Eurobasket. August 22, 2020. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  19. "Aix-Maurienne inks Chaz Williams, ex Kozuv". Eurobasket. January 6, 2022. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
  20. "Snýr aftur til Njarðvíkur". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). 27 May 2023. Retrieved 27 May 2023.
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