Hornets' Mark Williams gets the last laugh in bizarre trade saga involving Dalton Knecht as LeBron James drops a salty quote
Charlotte Hornets center Mark Williams got the last laugh on Wednesday night in the bizarre trade saga involving Los Angeles Lakers guard Dalton Knecht. Earlier this month, the Lakers traded Knecht, Cam Reddish and draft picks to the Hornets for Williams. The trade, however, was rescinded a couple of days later due to concerns the […]
Charlotte Hornets center Mark Williams got the last laugh on Wednesday night in the bizarre trade saga involving Los Angeles Lakers guard Dalton Knecht.
Earlier this month, the Lakers traded Knecht, Cam Reddish and draft picks to the Hornets for Williams.
The trade, however, was rescinded a couple of days later due to concerns the Lakers had about Williams' health after a failed physical.
On Wednesday night, Williams returned to the Hornets' lineup for the first time since the failed trade.
And it just so happened that the Hornets were playing the Lakers in Los Angeles.
(You couldn't write a better movie script if you tried.)
The Hornets pulled off the upset against the Lakers, winning 100-97 in front nearly 19,000 fans.
Williams didn't look like a guy who just failed a physical earlier this month. The former Duke standout scored 10 points and secured nine rebounds while playing 29 minutes in the win.
Knecht, meanwhile, scored just 3 points in 13 minutes of action.
Williams and Knecht met at mid-court for a brief post-game conversation.
Lakers superstar LeBron James was asked after the game what it was like to play against Williams, a player that was almost his teammate.
James quickly pointed out that Williams was never a teammate.
"He was never a teammate," said James. "He never stepped into the locker room. We never seen him….we never seen him, it got rescinded back to what it was before, so it wasn't no different."
James and the Lakers lost the game, but the NBA's all-time scoring leader did manage to throw down a thunderous dunk over Williams at one point in the game.
That's a fun highlight for LeBron, but it was Williams and the Hornets who left the Lakers' home court on Wednesday night smiling.
