Shammond Omar Williams (born April 5, 1975) is an American-born naturalized Georgian former professional
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...
player. Standing at , he played at both
point guard
The point guard (PG), also called the one or the point, is one of the Basketball positions, five positions in a regulation basketball game.
A point guard has perhaps the most specialized role of any position and is usually the shortest player ...
and
shooting guard
The shooting guard (SG), also known as the two, two guard or off guard,Shooting guards are 6'3"–6'7"BBC Sports academy URL last accessed 2006-09-09. is one of the five traditional basketball positions, positions in a regulation basketball game ...
positions. During his career he played in the
NBA
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...
and in Europe. He is currently the interim head coach for the
Denver Pioneers men's basketball
The Denver Pioneers men's basketball team represents the University of Denver and competes in the NCAA Division I men's college basketball in Denver, Colorado. They are led by head coach Tim Bergstraser and are members of the Summit League. Sinc ...
team.
Collegiate career
After attending
Fork Union Military Academy
Fork Union Military Academy (abbreviated as FUMA) is a private school, private, all-male, college preparatory Christian school, Christian Military school, military boarding school located in Fork Union, Virginia. Founded in 1898, Fork Union is co ...
, Williams played
college basketball
College basketball is basketball that is played by teams of Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. In the Higher education in the United States, United States, colleges and universities are governed by collegiate athle ...
at
North Carolina
North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...
under
Dean Smith
Dean Edwards Smith (February 28, 1931 – February 7, 2015) was an American men's college basketball Coach (basketball), head coach. Called a "coaching legend" by the Basketball Hall of Fame, he coached for 36 years at the University of North C ...
and later,
Bill Guthridge
William Wallace Guthridge (July 27, 1937 – May 12, 2015) was an American college basketball coach. Guthridge initially gained recognition after serving for thirty years as Dean Smith's assistant at the University of North Carolina and summin ...
.
[Shammond Williams Statistics – Basketball-Reference.com]
/ref> During the 1997–1998 season, he was a member of coach Guthridge's "Six Starters" rotation with Antawn Jamison
Antawn Cortez Jamison ( ; born June 12, 1976) is an American former professional basketball player who played 16 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He serves as director of pro personnel for the Washington Wizards. Jamison play ...
, Vince Carter
Vincent Lamar Carter Jr. (born January 26, 1977) is an American former professional basketball player who played for 22 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He primarily played the shooting guard and small forward positions, b ...
, Ed Cota
Eduardo Enrique Cota (born May 19, 1976) is a Panamanian-American former professional basketball player.
High school career
Cota played his freshman and sophomore years at Brooklyn, New York's Samuel J. Tilden High School. As a sophomore, he ...
, Ademola Okulaja
Ademola Okulaja (10 July 1975 – 17 May 2022) was a German professional basketball player. The last team he played for were the Brose Baskets of the Basketball Bundesliga. After his playing career, he became an agent for NBA player Dennis Schr ...
and Makhtar N'Diaye
Amadou Makhtar N'Diayé (born 31 December 1981) is a Senegalese former professional footballer who played as a midfielder.
He made fourteen appearances for his country at international level in 2002, notably participating in the 2002 FIFA Wor ...
. That season (his final college season), he averaged 16.7 points and 4.2 assists per game to go along with career averages of 10.7 points and 3.0 assists per game.
When Williams graduated from North Carolina
North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...
, he held the following school records:
* Most Career Three Point Field Goals Made: 233
* Most Season Three Point Field Goals Made: 95
* Most Three Point Field Goals Made in a Game: 8 (tie)
* Highest Career Free Throw Percentage: .849
* Highest Season Free Throw Percentage .911
Williams also became a pioneer of the internet during his collegiate career. In 1995, Shammond Williams became the very first collegiate athlete to have a website dedicated to him on the World Wide Web. The website was developed b
Seth Fleishman
and an archive of "Shammond's World"is still available for viewing.
Professional career
Williams was selected in the second round, 34th overall, of the 1998 NBA draft
The 1998 NBA draft took place on June 24, 1998, at General Motors Place in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. This draft helped turn around four struggling franchises: the Dallas Mavericks, the Sacramento Kings, the Boston Celtics, and the Tor ...
by the Chicago Bulls
The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago. The Bulls compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division of the Eastern Conference. The team was founded on January 16 ...
. While he never played for the Bulls, he did play for the Atlanta Hawks
The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta. The Hawks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division (NBA), Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), Easte ...
, Seattle SuperSonics
The Seattle SuperSonics (commonly shortened to Sonics) were an American professional basketball team based in Seattle. The SuperSonics competed in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Division (1967–1970), and ...
, Boston Celtics
The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), ...
, Denver Nuggets
The Denver Nuggets are an American professional basketball team based in Denver. The Nuggets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division (NBA), Northwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA), W ...
, New Orleans Hornets
New or NEW may refer to:
Music
* New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz
* ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013
** "New" (Paul McCartney song), 2013
* ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, 1995
* "New" (Daya song), 2017
* "New" (No Doubt song), 1 ...
, and Orlando Magic
The Orlando Magic are an American professional basketball team based in Orlando, Florida. The Magic compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division (NBA), Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference (NB ...
.
He played internationally for Unics Kazan
BC UNICS () is a professional basketball club in Kazan, Russia, that plays in the VTB United League, and formerly played in the EuroLeague. On February 28, 2022, EuroLeague Basketball suspended the team because of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukr ...
of Russia
Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
(where he obtained Georgian citizenship)[Georgia on Williams's mind]
July 29, 2004 and for Winterthur FC Barcelona of the Spanish Asociación de Clubs de Baloncesto
The Asociación de Clubes Españoles de Baloncesto (Spanish Basketball Clubs Association), more commonly known as the Asociación de Clubs de Baloncesto (ACB), is a national sports association responsible for administering the Liga Endesa, the m ...
(ACB). He has played for the Georgia national team[ and was the Most Valuable Player of the 2005 ]EuroChallenge
FIBA EuroChallenge (called the FIBA Europe League in 2003–05, and FIBA EuroCup in 2005–08) was the 3rd-tier continental club basketball competition in Europe, from 2003 to 2015. It was organized and run by FIBA Europe. It is not to be confus ...
All-Star Game.
Williams signed a one-year contract with the Los Angeles Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Conference (NBA ...
on July 12, 2006.
After spending one season with the Lakers, Williams returned to Europe
Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...
and signed with Pamesa Velencia for three seasons. Before the start of the 2009–2010 ACB regular season, Pamesa Valencia released Williams, whereupon he trained on his own in the United States. On November 9, 2009, Williams returned to Spain and signed with Unicaja Málaga.
In January 2011 he signed with Apollon Limassol BC
Apollon Limassol Basketball Club (), is a Cypriot basketball club. The team competes in the Cyprus Basketball Division A, the top tier of Cypriot basketball. The team represents the city of Limassol, Cyprus.
Having been one of the founding memb ...
in Cyprus
Cyprus (), officially the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Situated in West Asia, its cultural identity and geopolitical orientation are overwhelmingly Southeast European. Cyprus is the List of isl ...
. After finishing the season in Cyprus he signed with Sutor Basket Montegranaro in Italy
Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
.
Coaching career
During the 2011–12 season, he attended practices of North Carolina's men's basketball team and in 2012 was among the candidates to join Roy Williams' staff at UNC. He was also a counselor at the Nike Elite Youth Skill Academies. On June 21, 2012, Williams was appointed an assistant coach of the Furman Paladins
The Furman Paladins are the varsity athletic teams representing Furman University in Greenville, South Carolina, in intercollegiate athletics.
Furman competes in NCAA Division I athletics and is one of the smallest NCAA Division I schools in the ...
. In 2013, he moved to the Tulane Green Wave
The Tulane Green Wave are the athletic teams that represent Tulane University, located in New Orleans, Louisiana. Tulane competes in NCAA Division I as a member of the American Athletic Conference (The American). There are 14 Green Wave interc ...
, where he served a three-year stint as assistant coach, followed by one year at Western Kentucky Hilltoppers
The Western Kentucky Hilltoppers and Lady Toppers are the athletic teams that represent Western Kentucky University (WKU), located in Bowling Green, Kentucky, in intercollegiate sports as a member of the NCAA Division I ranks, competing in the ...
. On September 15, 2021, Williams resumed his coaching career by accepting an offer to join the Old Dominion Monarchs women's basketball team as an assistant coach. On July 2, 2024, Williams was hired as an assistant coach for the Denver Pioneers
The Denver Pioneers are the sports teams of the University of Denver (DU). They play in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I, and have amassed 35 NCAA titles as of 2024, which is in the top 15 among all schools (24 in S ...
.
Personal life
He is a cousin of former basketball player Kevin Garnett
Kevin Maurice Garnett ( ; born May 19, 1976) is an American former professional basketball player who played 21 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "the Big Ticket," Garnett is considered one of the greatest power f ...
of the Minnesota Timberwolves
The Minnesota Timberwolves (often referred to as the Wolves or T-wolves) are an American professional basketball team based in Minneapolis. The Timberwolves compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Divisio ...
and Louis McCullough, who has played professional basketball overseas.Chester complete McCullough swoop
/ref> He is a member of the Psi Delta chapter of Omega Psi Phi
Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. () is a List of African-American fraternities, historically African-American Fraternities and sororities, fraternity. It was founded on November 17, 1911 at Howard University. Omega Psi Phi is a founding member of ...
.
He is godfather to Mitchell Robinson
Mitchell Robinson III (born April 1, 1998) is an American professional basketball player for the New York Knicks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was selected with the 36th overall pick in the 2018 NBA draft. Before beginning hi ...
.
References
External links
Denver Pioneers bio
Euroleague.net Profile
*
Basketpedya.com Profile
Profile On Pamesa Valencia Official Site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Shammond
1975 births
Living people
20th-century African-American sportsmen
21st-century African-American sportsmen
American expatriate basketball people in Cyprus
American expatriate basketball people in Italy
American expatriate basketball people in Russia
American expatriate basketball people in Spain
American expatriate basketball people in Turkey
American men's basketball players
Apollon Limassol BC players
Atlanta Hawks players
Baloncesto Málaga players
Basketball coaches from New York (state)
Basketball players from the Bronx
BC UNICS players
Boston Celtics players
CB Murcia players
Chicago Bulls draft picks
Denver Nuggets players
FC Barcelona Bàsquet players
Fork Union Military Academy alumni
Liga ACB players
Los Angeles Lakers players
Men's basketball players from Georgia (country)
New Orleans Hornets players
North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball players
Orlando Magic players
Point guards
Seattle SuperSonics players
Shooting guards
Sutor Basket Montegranaro players
Tulane Green Wave men's basketball coaches
Ülker G.S.K. basketball players
Valencia Basket players
Western Kentucky Hilltoppers basketball coaches