Mark Williams spoke to the press after the Charlotte Hornets‘ 100-97 win over the Los Angeles Lakers. He noted that the entire situation with the Lakers, his failed medical, and the subsequent rescinded trade was a rollercoaster journey. However, Williams does suspect that the Lakers didn’t just rescind the trade due to the failed medical and believes there was more at play behind the Lakers’ decision-making.
“You go from getting traded, thinking you’re going to LA, and then they choose to fail me on my physical… I don’t know if, for them, it was about what they gave up or what went into that reasoning, but I don’t think it was solely because of my physical.”
The Los Angeles Lakers traded Dalton Knecht, Cam Reddish, a 2030 first-round pick-swap, and a 2031 unprotected first-round pick to the Charlotte Hornets to land Mark Williams. The former Duke big man had reportedly been handpicked by Luka Doncic to join the Lakers, and the front office landed Williams quickly to try and impress their next franchise star.
Williams appeared excited to go to the Lakers, sending a quick message with the iconic purple and gold color scheme of the Lakers. However, the deal quickly fell apart after a failed medical, and the Lakers rescinded the trade, bringing them all their assets back.
The Charlotte Hornets were not happy about the Lakers going back on the trade, saying that they had operated with them in good faith. For whatever reason, the Lakers found something in Williams’ medical results that made them think the deal was not carried out the right way.
The Hornets attempted to dispute the decision to rescind the trade by approaching the higher-ups within the league office. They even tried to force a historic mock trial for arbitration over the matter.
However, upon review, they saw that the Lakers were well within their rights to rescind the trade as a key component of the deal – the medical was unsatisfactory, thus voiding the original terms of the agreement.
Williams spoke in the immediate aftermath of the trade falling apart, noting that he didn’t understand how he failed his medical. He believes that he did everything as he was asked, and was in good health and spirits before, during, and after the physical took place.
Even his agent came out and put the Los Angeles Lakers on blast, claiming that Williams was ready to put his best foot forward with the franchise and that the Lakers pulled the plug on the deal in the 11th hour for frivolous and unfair reasons.
Williams was able to get some measure of revenge over the Lakers, as he put up 10 points (3-7 FG), nine rebounds, and two assists in the Hornets’ win. During the game, he was also spotted celebrating when LeBron James missed a big shot. And after the game, he threw shade at the Lakers via his Instagram story.
For now, this trade fiasco seems to be over, as the NBA doesn’t intend to take any punitive action against the Lakers for rescinding the trade. But the hurt feelings between Williams and the Lakers may continue for years to come.
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