2022-23 Player Season Review: Donovan Williams

Although Donovan Williams went undrafted in the 2022 NBA Draft, he remained on the radar of the Atlanta Hawks through the first couple of months of the season. After a three-year college basketball career beginning at the University of Texas and ending at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Williams turned pro. He joined the Long Island Nets of the G League after being waived by the Brooklyn Nets from a training camp contract to begin the 2022-23 season.

On January 14th of this year, the Hawks waived Jarrett Culver from his two-way contract, and in his place they signed Williams to a two-year two-way contract through the 2023-24 season. From there, he spent the majority of the second half of the season with the Hawks’ G League affiliate, the College Park Skyhawks. In 32 games with the Skyhawks and Long Island Nets, he averaged 13.4 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 1.4 assists in 28.2 minutes per game.

Williams is a shooting guard who handles the ball well for his size and can score in bursts. While he prefers to do the bulk of his damage from deep, he can also use his explosiveness to get to the rim on and off the ball. He has a wiry, 6’6” frame that allows him to guard most back court positions, but he will require refining to operate consistently in a team defense setting.

Simply put, there’s not a lot of tape to break down — at least not at the NBA level. Williams saw just four minutes of game time with the Atlanta Hawks during the 2022-23 season. But his time spent practicing with the senior team upon the conclusion of the G League season can only be good for his basketball development. And at just 21-years-old and signed beyond this year, Atlanta sees him as a possible piece who could help them down the road.

Donovan Williams is a strong candidate to represent the Atlanta Hawks as a member of the 2023 Las Vegas Summer League team this July. If he shows out there, he may be a guy to look for in training camp for the coming season.