MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — In just over a year in the NBA, Derrick Williams has gone from being the No. 2 overall pick to trade bait.
But the Minnesota Timberwolves forward says he is taking the rumors in stride. Williams practiced in Minneapolis on Friday in preparation to play with the Wolves’ summer league team in Las Vegas next week.
His name was mentioned in possible deals while the Wolves were pursuing Lakers forward Pau Gasol. Now that the Wolves have turned their attention to Portland’s Nicolas Batum, Williams has been taken off the table.
He has shed 15 pounds this summer in hopes of becoming quick enough to play small forward. He says “if I had played a little bit better, I wouldn’t be in those talks.”
