The Los Angeles Lakers got their first look at center Mark Williams on Wednesday night in their stunning loss to the Charlotte Hornets. It was the first time L.A. had seen him since rescinding the trade that would’ve brought Williams to the Lakers at the trade deadline.
It is still unclear exactly what it is the Lakers found in their physical — it was reported to not be his lingering back issue — but the Hornets were vehement in their disagreement of L.A.’s assessment. There were rumors that the Hornets were going to try and protest the decision and force the trade through anyways, although commissioner Adam Silver said that never happened.
And now, Williams’ agent — Jeff Schwartz of Excel Sports Management — is joining the Hornets in criticizing the Lakers for rescinding the deal, via Shams Charania of The Athletic:
Statement from Jeff Schwartz of Excel Sports Management: "The overwhelming sentiment, after conferring with multiple, nationally recognized doctors, is that the Los Angeles Lakers should not have failed Mark Williams on his physical."
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) February 20, 2025
Statement from Jeff Schwartz of Excel Sports Management: "The overwhelming sentiment, after conferring with multiple, nationally recognized doctors, is that the Los Angeles Lakers should not have failed Mark Williams on his physical."
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) February 20, 2025
It seems as though all the other people in this trade — the Hornets and the agent — says that the Lakers did something wrong by rescinding the trade. Of course, it has to be stated why maybe those parties would feel that way.
For the Hornets, welcoming Williams back means losing out on the assets gained from him, as well as Dalton Knecht. And it means having to deal with any future injuries the pop up for the routinely unavailable Williams.
For his agent, having a trade rescinded due to medical issues makes it very hard to have leverage with teams in any future contract negotiations. On a smaller scale, it also means having to stay in the Charlotte market compared to the L.A. one, which likely would have been better for Williams’ future earnings.
Mark Williams doesn’t understand how he failed
Mark Williams himself was unclear as to why he failed the Lakers’ physical and felt he was at his healthiest when the trade went through. It certainly is an unprecedented situation league-wide, but one the Lakers felt strongly enough to go out on a limb for anyways. It seems, despite everything, that Williams is going to remain a Hornet.
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