Following his trade from the Los Angeles Clippers to the Atlanta Hawks at the trade deadline, the 16-year NBA veteran, Lou Williams seriously considered retiring but in the end he decided he did want to play for his hometown team.
Williams, who is a three-time Sixth Man of the Year winner, averaged 12.1 points a game in 42 appearances with the Clippers this season.
“It hurts,” Williams said. “I had a lot of investment there. We had some success. We were gearing up for another deep run, a championship run. That what my mentality. I thought I would finish the season there.”
Glad to have you, @TeamLou23.#TrueToAtlanta pic.twitter.com/lCCbE1SFvG
— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) March 31, 2021
The Hawks are on a playoff push under interim head coach, Nate McMillan, and Williams is expected to help them be inside the best eight teams in the Eastern Conference.
“I still feel like I can play at a high level,” he added. “I feel like I can help this team do some things. I don’t want to look back and say I retired prematurely, be asking myself what could have been or what I could’ve done. This is an opportunity to finish out the season with this team and go from there.”
This will be Williams' second stint with the Hawks. The 34 year-old spent two years (2012-14) with the organization, one year prior to winning his first Sixth Man of the Year Award with the Toronto Raptors.
“It’s not personal against the Hawks,” Williams added. “I just needed time to figure out what’s best for me at this stage of my career. Now that I’m here, I feel embraced. The guys seem to want me here. I’m ready to make this push and move forward.”