Shawne Williams Busted

On a day when the NBA is focused on the legal matter involving Gilbert Arenas, I find myself a little more interested in the one involving Shawne Williams. Williams was a first round pick of the Pacers back in 2006 and promptly embraced the Pacer culture of the day and was arrested on drug charges within a year. The Mavericks traded for him in 2008 and essentially told him, "you have one chance, don't screw it up." Within about two months Williams mysteriously disappeared from the team and wasn't heard from again for quite some time. The word was he'd gotten caught trying to take a bag of weed on a team flight and had been banished. The Mavs packaged him in a trade to New Jersey last week. Today he was waived by the Nets and simultaneously arrested on 8 drug counts in Tennessee.

Crap like this happens all the time in the NBA. A talented-but-troubled kid comes into the league, gets a little money that he doesn't deserve, and runs himself out of the league before his first contract is up. I took a special interest in Williams' case for two reasons:

1.) in the short time he was with the Mavericks he was given jersey number 4. To me, number 4 for the Mavericks is Michael Finley and Michael Finley alone, and to have a known spare like Williams wearing that number drew my ire.
2.) Just about a month ago Williams did an interview with a Memphis newspaper in which he basically said the Mavericks front office had misrepresented him and all his troubles were in the past.

I don't mean to revel in the guy's problems. I just think it's probably a good idea to keep your mouth shut when you're currently involved in a business venture designed for the sole purpose of manufacturing and selling drugs.

-BG