Someone made a Finals highlights mixtape for Deron Williams, and it's very sad
Deron Williams didn't have a particularly good NBA Finals. In fact, the Cavaliers probably would have been better off if he'd just skipped the series against the Warriors. The 32-year-old point guard and backup to Kyrie Irving was an abject mess in Cleveland's five-game loss to Golden State, finishing with only five points on 2-of-16 shooting, including 1-of-9 from three-point range, and five turnovers in 61 minutes.
It's not a performance that anyone would want to relive, but it is kind of mesmerizing to watch it play out. And now you can do that, courtesy Youtuber Bootum Bootum, who spliced together Williams' brutal championship series plays for the lowlights mixtape at the top of this post—a video that's hard to watch yet utterly engrossing.
It really is amazing just how many things Williams did wrong over the course of a mere hour of game action: The nearly five-minute video features the veteran bricking shots off the front of the rim, dribbling wildly into the paint and straight into defenders, repeatedly blowing defensive assignments and losing his man, dominating entire possessions only to put up a contested or low-percentage shot, or whipping passes well beyond his teammates. There's one point at the 45-second mark where Williams takes the ball up court and, despite having Irving on the floor with him, tries to go one-on-one with Steph Curry, unleashing a flurry of crossover dribbles and stutter steps before taking a stepback jumper that clangs off the rim—a possession that probably made LeBron James want to throw a few chairs onto the court.
The former No. 3 overall pick will be a free agent this off-season. He should probably hope that this video won't be circulating around NBA front offices as he looks for employment.
