Jason Williams To Sign With Orlando Magic
by erivera7 on Aug 19, 2009 3:15 PM EDT
in News
53 comments
The Orlando Magic will sign Jason Williams in the coming days, according to a source that spoke with RealGM's Alex Kennedy. Williams, who worked out for the Magic on Tuesday, resides in Orlando with his family and will return after retiring shortly before the 08-09 season.
UPDATE: Well, after weeks of searching for a third point guard, it appears that Orlando Magic general manager Otis Smith has found his man in Jason Williams. It's clear that Smith tried everything in his power to acquire C.J. Watson from the Golden State Warriors, but the Warriors wouldn't bite on an offer. As such, Smith turned his eyes elsewhere and found a player that was actually rumored to sign with the Magic during last year's off-season. As such, this move shouldn't come as too much of a surprise. Williams stated that Orlando was his top choice and voila, he's on his way.
Expect analysis on the signing at Third Quarter Collapse in the next coming days.
UPDATE 2: I will be at the RDV SportsPlex tomorrow morning to speak with Jason Williams. Stay tuned for a Q/A post sometime during the afternoon. Thanks.
UPDATE 3: Don't put it past Smith to still try to execute a sign-and-trade for Watson.
"It’s going to always be an option. Even after we sign someone, it’s going to be an option."
UPDATE 4: Tania Ganguli was able to speak with head coach Stan Van Gundy earlier this afternoon, and here's what he had to say about signing Williams:
He [...] said Williams and Anthony Johnson will battle in camp for the minutes. So don't be so sure Johnson is definitely this team's No. 2.
"I think there’s some real similarities between he and Rafer in that I think you have guys that are in their 30s, veteran guys who are a little bit older, but have the type of bodies that are a little bit younger than their age.
"The thing that Jason’s got that we really like he can play big minutes if needed, and that’s what ended up happening with Jameer last year when he went down. Jason, as he puts in the work, gets back in shape, has the type of body and the type of energy that will allow him to play big minutes if we need that. We hope we won’t."
Van Gundy, who's familiar with Williams from when they both were in Miami, said the main thing he was interested in at yesterday's workout was that "he still looked like Jason Williams."
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This is a very interesting sign. Jason is actually alittle younger than AJ, but much more rusty. I wonder two things, depending on how Jason Williams returns and looks on the floor, he may actually have a decent chance to surpass AJ as 1st backup compared to the other FA’s Magic may have been looking at. But even if Jason does surpass AJ as a better backup, he is still 33 and AJ and Jason Williams don’t scream point guards of the future with Nelson. So would GM Otis Smith still pull the trigger on a AJ trade and/or a assets (TPE, Pick) trade for another point guard who is younger and more capable to play now than either AJ/J-Will and in the future?
I think we will be Okay with just AJ and Jason Williams. AJ as a backup lead the Magic to the Finals, as long as he stays a backup…, so Jason is just good depth and even possibly better than AJ, and the Magic retain the whole TPE plus their pick.
Otis doesn't think he's "rusty."
Williams was having nagging pain in his knees in 2008 and didn’t feel he could compete at the level that he had in the past. He takes the year off, gets healthy, feels great, and wants to return. Otis watched the workout and deemed him ready to play. Williams is one hell of a playmaker and starter in this league for 10 years. I have no doubt that he will be the primary backup.
It's not a dunk unless your hand makes contact with the rim. Yeah, I'm talkin' to you, "Superman..."
by ben_gleicher on Aug 19, 2009 5:23 PM EDT up reply actions
you forgot to mention about dooling....
magic offered him 3.8 mill for next 2 yr
its on the bottom of the page of the link u provided
LOL
Deja Vu for the Magic? I think not..
It's not a dunk unless your hand makes contact with the rim. Yeah, I'm talkin' to you, "Superman..."
by ben_gleicher on Aug 19, 2009 5:24 PM EDT up reply actions
This.
I'm the other guy at Third Quarter Collapse, with a Twitter account.
"Never hate your enemies. It affects your judgement." - Michael Corleone
I welcome him here.
And I applaud Otis’ effort in trying to acquire CJ but with our cap situation, I feel like this was the best turnout IMO. Good work Otis. Welcome to Orlando JWill.
"Blue and white...ignite...* BOOOOOM * !!!!! - Dwight Howard (Orlando Magic playoff jumbotron message)
by magic12ball on Aug 19, 2009 3:53 PM EDT via mobile reply actions
More Orl Magic news
Reportly via sentinel and john denton,
Dooling has been offered 3.8 mill for 2 years
Anthony Johnson signed 2 yr deal
Lee is interested with Celtics or Heat
Dooling was offered that by the Nets?
Spreading that Calgary Flames, Montreal Expos, The U, and Orlando Magic love.
Dooling got 2 years for 6 million
Magic low-balled him last summer. Dooling is a much better player than Williams (at this point) or A.J. If they gave him a fair offer he would’ve stayed, no doubt about it.
It's not a dunk unless your hand makes contact with the rim. Yeah, I'm talkin' to you, "Superman..."
by ben_gleicher on Aug 19, 2009 5:26 PM EDT up reply actions
Dooling was good but scary...
As good as the guy was…I don’t trust the guy on the court or in the locker…
Spreading that Calgary Flames, Montreal Expos, The U, and Orlando Magic love.
That's partly why the Magic let him go.
I'm the other guy at Third Quarter Collapse, with a Twitter account.
"Never hate your enemies. It affects your judgement." - Michael Corleone
Well he's not a set up guy
He was a great locker room guy last season, and an above average defender of point guards. He also became a knock down 3pt shooter. But as you pointed out, he’s not gonna run a team. He’s very efficient if paired in the backcourt with someone who can distribute, a la Vince Carter.
It's not a dunk unless your hand makes contact with the rim. Yeah, I'm talkin' to you, "Superman..."
by ben_gleicher on Aug 19, 2009 7:06 PM EDT up reply actions
This.
I'm the other guy at Third Quarter Collapse, with a Twitter account.
"Never hate your enemies. It affects your judgement." - Michael Corleone
No Lue.
I'm the other guy at Third Quarter Collapse, with a Twitter account.
"Never hate your enemies. It affects your judgement." - Michael Corleone
White Chocolate!
Good job Otis, now get Adonal Foyle In and our post-season activities are done
A with that, the quest to sign Bobby Jackson officially ends.
…we are only left with what could of been.
Spreading that Calgary Flames, Montreal Expos, The U, and Orlando Magic love.
LOL
I'm the other guy at Third Quarter Collapse, with a Twitter account.
"Never hate your enemies. It affects your judgement." - Michael Corleone
Screw the Warriors
C.J. Watson would’ve been a fantastic fit in Orlando. They get a fantastic offer for him and they turn it down. Now what? He’ll sign a 1 year deal so he can be a free agent next summer when Orlando and the rest of the league has more to spend. He’ll continue to play behind 5 or 6 other guards in Oakland and waste his talent in a losing situation.
It's not a dunk unless your hand makes contact with the rim. Yeah, I'm talkin' to you, "Superman..."
I'm shocked that the Warriors declined the offer Otis sent them.
It was a pretty substantial package for a guy like Watson.
I'm the other guy at Third Quarter Collapse, with a Twitter account.
"Never hate your enemies. It affects your judgement." - Michael Corleone
Me Too
It doesn’t look like CJ Watson will ever get a large role from the club in the long term.
So, how is he more valuable than a future first round pick? Plus cash! Plus AJ!
I’m shocked they turned down that deal too.
The more I looked at the rest of the market, the more I realized he was worth everything Otis offered.
It was a very fair deal that benefited both teams. But as the guy from Polk County said, this might be Otis being Otis. Watson doesn’t want to be back with the Warriors. He doesn’t want the 3 year 4.5 million deal. Watson might take a one year offer from them so he’ll get another chance next season. If Golden State KNEW they would only get one year out of him, why on earth would they turn down the Magic’s package of AJ, a 1st, and cash? Certainly thats better than one year from Watson. Williams might not have signed if ORL had 2 PG’s in front of him. Now the Magic will have 3 quality PG’s no matter what. If Golden State changes its mind, the Magic will be scary deep at the 1.
It's not a dunk unless your hand makes contact with the rim. Yeah, I'm talkin' to you, "Superman..."
by ben_gleicher on Aug 19, 2009 7:17 PM EDT up reply actions
Bingo!
That’s exactly the way my friends described it to me…you expressed it much better than me though, Ben…Keepin’ my fingers crossed!
by Magic fan in Polk on Aug 19, 2009 7:25 PM EDT up reply actions
Awful. He's simply hideous on that end.
Third Quarter Collapse: An Orlando Magic blog at SB Nation | Brandon Bass: "I just play hard."
Yep!
You and I have some common ground, Ben. Do you think the Watson trade could still happen? A couple of my friends think Otis made this siging to ease the pressure Golden State was giving Otis about C.J.
We can still give them a 1st and A.J. and then we would still have Jason Williams as back-up.
by Magic fan in Polk on Aug 19, 2009 5:59 PM EDT up reply actions
It could happen, but I don't foresee it occurring.
You never know with Otis, though.
I'm the other guy at Third Quarter Collapse, with a Twitter account.
"Never hate your enemies. It affects your judgement." - Michael Corleone
Otis doesn't value defense from a backup 1
He wants passers who can hit an open shot. So he got what he wanted. I think that its best that way… point guards usually have the toughest defensive assignments, so you’re not going to find a “stopper” who’s a backup. Jason’s playmaking ability is a huge upgrade over A.J.’s.
It's not a dunk unless your hand makes contact with the rim. Yeah, I'm talkin' to you, "Superman..."
I don't know about playmaking ability.
I think Jason Williams is getting by more on his reputation than anything, at this point.
He wasn’t exactly sterling with the Miami Heat before he semi-retired.
I'm the other guy at Third Quarter Collapse, with a Twitter account.
"Never hate your enemies. It affects your judgement." - Michael Corleone
Jason Williams entry passes to the low post to Shaquille O’Neal were horrific in that final season.
I don’t think he’s physically able to be much of a playmaker anymore — I mean, break people down and create shots for others — but I thought he was still a solid floor general for the most part. Took good care of the ball and got the Heat into their offense.
I think that was do to numerous ailments more than losing his abilities
His last season, he clearly wasn’t healthy. Passing ability doesn’t go away with age, and neither does ballhandling. Yes, he’s not as quick as he once was, but he has enough left in the tank to create in transition. I dunno if he still has the ability to lose a defender one-on-one, but that won’t be necessary with the talent around him. He just needs to deliver the ball consistently. He was the starting PG on a championship team 3 years ago, and he took a year off to get his body right. I think that he should be able return to the form of 05-07 without a fountain of youth.
It's not a dunk unless your hand makes contact with the rim. Yeah, I'm talkin' to you, "Superman..."
by ben_gleicher on Aug 19, 2009 7:34 PM EDT up reply actions
To clarify: J-Will’s general passing was still good in that final season …
It was just his post entry passing that bugged me. Dwyane Wade’s too, I’ve never seen a perimeter player through a pass of a post player’s knees as many times I saw it in the first half of that season. Shambolic.
Eh, Jason could throw the ball at the sky and Dwight can get it.
I think it’s safe to say that Williams’ margin for error is greater with Howard around.
I'm the other guy at Third Quarter Collapse, with a Twitter account.
"Never hate your enemies. It affects your judgement." - Michael Corleone
He did hit some clutch shots in the finals against the Mavs though
him and Gary Payton stepped up
Never trust a fart
by AB's triple double on Aug 19, 2009 10:34 PM EDT up reply actions
It Happened
White Chocolate is here. He’ll compete with Anthony Johnson, and AJ becomes a good failsafe if this doesn’t work. At least he can run the point and shoot 3s, the two things that I think Otis was looking for in a PG.
Poor Man's GM @ poormansgm.blogspot.com
Fundamentally Sound: Much Ado About the Spurs @ fundamentally-sound.blogspot.com
Doesn't hurt to have options.
I'm the other guy at Third Quarter Collapse, with a Twitter account.
"Never hate your enemies. It affects your judgement." - Michael Corleone
Not at all.
It’s a safe pick. Instead of speculating on someone like Will Conroy or Julius Hodge. We’ll see what happens from there.
Poor Man's GM @ poormansgm.blogspot.com
Fundamentally Sound: Much Ado About the Spurs @ fundamentally-sound.blogspot.com
Disappointed
I thought Jason Williams was lousy with the Heat two years ago. I didn’t think he was an NBA level player then, and I don’t believe he’s suddenly become one by not playing pro ball for a full year.
It won’t matter much since he’s a third string point guard … but it would have been nice to have gotten someone who can do the job.
Don't put it past Otis to still try to get Watson.
I’m not saying it’s going to happen, but you never know.
I'm the other guy at Third Quarter Collapse, with a Twitter account.
"Never hate your enemies. It affects your judgement." - Michael Corleone
i like it,
with the information available to us now…
stan does have a lot of experience with him and, as always, am confident he knows what he is doing.
Uhmmm....
I hear everyone’s logic, and there are alot of good angles being presented, but I think I’m gonna side with the idea of this signing being an insurance/leverage move by ‘Otis 11’ to use against GSW to still get Watson. I’ll believe it until I am shown otherwise. This guy is a real magician.
At the very least, it gives Otis options.
I'm the other guy at Third Quarter Collapse, with a Twitter account.
"Never hate your enemies. It affects your judgement." - Michael Corleone
I found an interesting article(link)
Anybody that cares too read it and tell me what you think…
by Magic fan in Polk on Aug 20, 2009 5:16 AM EDT reply actions
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