Leon Williams (basketball, born 1986)

Leon Vernon Williams Jr. (born July 24, 1986) is an American professional basketball player.

For the Dutch basketball player, see Leon Williams (basketball, born 1991).
Leon Williams
Leon Williams in action with Cáceres Ciudad del Baloncesto.
No. 4 – Seoul SK Knights
PositionCenter
LeagueKBL
Personal information
Born (1986-07-24) July 24, 1986
Baltimore, Maryland
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
Listed weight246 lb (112 kg)
Career information
High schoolCardinal Gibbons
(Baltimore, Maryland)
CollegeOhio (2004–2008)
NBA draft2008: undrafted
Playing career2008–present
Career history
2008–2009Pınar Karşıyaka
2009–2010Erdemir
2010Strasbourg IG
2011–2012Cáceres
2012–2013Goyang Orions
2013Cangrejeros de Santurce
2013–2014Goyang Orions
2014Cangrejeros de Santurce
2014–2015Anyang KGC
2015Cangrejeros de Santurce
2016Kavala
2016Cangrejeros de Santurce
2016Best Balıkesir
2016–2017Busan KT Sonicboom
2017Brujos de Guayama
2017–2018Busan KT Sonicboom
2018Salta Basket
2018–2020Wonju DB Promy
2020–2021Changwon LG Sakers
2021–presentSeoul SK Knights
Career highlights and awards
  • Korean League champion (2022)
  • Korean League All-Star (2019)
  • First-team All-MAC (2008)
  • Second-team All-MAC (2007)
  • MAC tournament MVP (2005)
  • MAC Freshman of the Year (2005)
  • MAC All-Freshman team (2005)

Career

Williams graduated from the Cardinal Gibbons School in 2004. After high school, Williams played college basketball for Ohio University from 2004 to 2008, during that time he also played in the summer league Belize Elite Basketball League for the Belize Bank Bulldogs.

After graduating in 2008, Williams started his professional career in Turkey where he played for two years for Pınar Karşıyaka and then Erdemir where he was the top rebounder of the Turkish Basketball League in both seasons.

In 2010, Williams signed with the French basketball team Strasbourg IG, however, after the pre-season and just before the start of the season he left the team and country without notice and without the clubs consent, invoking either a sick relative or a desire to start a career in real estate, Strasbourg threatened sanctions but nothing came from that.[1]

One year later, after the expiry of his contract, he went to Spain to play for Cáceres Patrimonio de la Humanidad in the Liga Española de Baloncesto, the Spanish basketball second division.[2]

Following that season he moved on to Korean Basketball League side Goyang Orions, partly because of his Korean-American's girlfriend desire to discover her roots, he also announced his intention to become a Korean citizen.[3] After a season in South Korea he moved to Cangrejeros de Santurce in the Baloncesto Superior Nacional whose season succeeds the Korean basketball season, he would alternate between the two leagues for the next three years.

On January 13, 2016, he signed with Kavala of for the rest of the 2015–16 season.[4] He later re-joined the Cangrejeros de Santurce for the 2016 BSN season. On August 5, 2016, Williams signed with Best Balıkesir of Turkey.[5] On December 4, 2016, he parted ways with Balıkesir after averaging 11.7 points and 9.9 rebounds in Turkish top division.[6]

References
  1. "The Mayhem!. (requires subscription)", Les Dernières Nouvelles d'Alsace, 6 October 2010. Retrieved on 23 March 2015. "Accesible.".(in French)
  2. "Leon Williams finishes the roster." Archived 2016-04-14 at the Wayback Machine, Cáceres Ciudad del Baloncesto, 12 August 2011. Retrieved on 23 March 2015.(in Spanish)
  3. "Leon Williams Decides to Become Korean (Youtube).", Arirang, 13 December 2012. Retrieved on 23 March 2015.
  4. Kavala signs Williams, Kromah and McKie
  5. Leon Williams inks with Best Balikesir
  6. Best Balikesir, Leon Williams part ways
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.