The Los Angeles Lakers’ G-League squad, the South Bay Lakers, have been busy lately.
In addition to cutting ties with Luka Doncic’s 7-foot former Dallas Mavericks teammate via a buyout, South Bay acquired a 6-foot-11 ex-Miami Heat center via a trade.
“The South Bay Lakers have acquired center Malik Williams from the College Park Skyhawks in exchange for a 2026 first-round draft pick (from Rip City via Rio Grande Valley by way of Osceola) and a 2027 first-round pick,” the G-League announced Friday.
Williams was once a five-star recruit who many believed could have a successful NBA career. So far, things haven’t gone as smoothly as the Louisville product probably would have liked. After spending five seasons with the Cardinals, Williams declared for the 2022 NBA Draft but ultimately went undrafted. Williams began his professional career with Anwil Wloclawek of the Polish Basketball League before spending time with the Sioux Falls Skyforce, Toronto Raptors, Atlanta Hawks, and College Park Skyhawks.
The 27-year-old is only averaging 2.7 points and 5.4 rebounds per game in the NBA for his career, shooting 26.5% from the field in seven contests. However, it’s worth noting that Williams is contributing 16.1 points and 10.7 rebounds with the Skyhawks in the G-League this season while connecting on 41.9% of his field goals.
Williams is an interesting addition to the Lakers’ G-League roster, to say the least.
