Dallas continues to bash Grant Williams, while other former players take jabs at them
Right after the deal the original report came out that Williams had rubbed some in Dallas the wrong way. One example was Grant wearing Tatum sneakers instead of Luka's. Yes, that seems like a silly thing to get too upset about. Williams was always known as a good teammate in Boston. Even when his role was significantly reduced during his contract season by new head coach Joe Mazzulla, Williams played the good soldier.People within the Dallas Mavericks were turned off by Grant Williams' 'yapping,' and he was reportedly not in good shape, per @espn_macmahon
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) February 14, 2024
“I would say one of the ways that Grant Williams rubbed people the wrong way, the yap, yap, yapping obviously that’s kind of part of it… pic.twitter.com/uJeJ4xgDq6
Boston fans were split on Williams with more of the stat people singing his praises, while others thought he was useless. If Williams reported out of shape to his new team then yes that was unprofessional on his part, but he'd be far from the first player to do that.
I just don't like the look of a former team (or it's fans when that happens) bashing a guy right after he's traded, when there was none of that talk while he was there. The Red Sox notoriously have done this in Boston whenever a star player signs or is traded. Typically the most likley culprit is someone in ownership.
Mark Cuban isn't one to shy away from talking, so it would be surprising if he was a main source. Former recent key players for the Mavs like Jalen Brunson (now an All-Star on the Knicks), Christian Wood (now on the Lakers) and Boston's Kristaps Porzingsis have contrasted their current environments versus poorer previous ones, assumed to be a dig at Dallas. Kyle Kuzma also reportedly turned down an opportunity to be traded to Dallas at last week trade deadline.
The Hornets have won all three games since Williams has arrived, while the Mavs are riding a six game win streak. Seems in poor taste for the anti-Grant stuff to still be coming out.