Sacramento Kings: Getting to know Brandon Williams

In an extensive interview, new Sacramento Kings assistant general manager Brandon Williams sheds light on his journey through the ranks, what drew him to the job and much more.

After a very eventful month of July, all is quiet on the Sacramento Kings‘ front for the beginning of August.

That’s for very good reason as the Kings addressed their biggest needs, whether on the roster or in the front office, to fully immerse themselves in a proper rebuild. That was only punctuated with the hiring of Brandon Williams to act as the team’s assistant general manager alongside Vlade Divac, the team’s GM and vice president of basketball operations.

Now in the week and a half since the official announcement of his hiring, Williams has been meeting with members of the Sacramento media as part of his introduction to the team and the community as a whole.

In a recent interview with Kings reporter Sean Cunningham of ABC 10, Williams touched on many topics, ranging from his journey over the years as a player and now as a front office executive, as well as his overall thoughts on the team, both present and past.

First, when asked about his thoughts on the team before his arrival, WIlliams had this to say about his perception of the Kings from his vantage point, whether it was during his time with the Philadelphia 76ers or elsewhere:

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"“Well, to be honest, it was a lack of understanding, at least with what the vision was. You know, you never know what the intimacies of an organization are until you work for it. So there’s the perception and my perception was I’m not sure what the vision was, what direction they’re headed. Is it a rebuild or do they want to do what we did here in Philly? Do they feel like they’re further along? Do players like playing there? It’s not clear what the truth was.”"

In the same answer, Williams pivoted to what drew him about the opportunity when he eventually came to Sacramento to meet with the organization and their renewed vision that ultimately led him to take his role with the team:

"“I’ve always identified with sort of the chase. I’ve always been a dreamer and I kind of fell in love with just a lot of things that I was hearing. In the end, the worst that can happen is that you fail, but got to be able to dream big and I like being a part of a group that’s unafraid and willing to take big risks. So, what I found here was different than maybe what had been advertised publicly, that we’re not at all in disarray. This is an organization that’s very excited and has made some great moves recently that move us further along, so I’m hoping that I will add to our recent successes.”"

Being that he was hired some time after the team finished making their various moves in free agency, Williams had this to say about the Kings’ overall offseason and the veteran presence they’ve assembled with the likes of Vince Carter, Zach Randolph and George Hill, more specifically:

"“There’s so many little nuances to the game that young players need to learn and we’ve got guys who will be able to do that. I think that is one of the smarter moves, being able to add that kind of presence and that kind of ability to what could be really an exciting, young core. To bring them along, bring them along a little slowly. If you could imagine any young and inexperienced person in any job, you could throw too much at them right away, which was something that happened to us in Philadelphia. It can be somewhat detrimental because confidence is so fragile at that early stage.“So what attracted me was knowing that our young pieces would have great tutelage and that over the coming year, two, three years, we should see those players maturing and really find out which of them is going to be the key piece to attract, hopefully, what is monster additions to get ourselves to a championship level.”"

While Williams touches on much more in the remaining parts of the interview, including what he hopes to see when the team enters training camp, it’s hard to not be blown away by his poise and experience despite his young age for a person of his position.

Williams carries a significant amount of knowledge and understanding that key voices are needed around a young roster such as the Kings, being that he’s seen the downside of what can happen with certain promising players who aren’t experiencing any success. With key pieces put in place before Williams’ arrival, hopefully that’s something that could hopefully be avoided this time around while he’s in Sacramento.

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Although he hasn’t been on the job for long, Williams has only echoed what many people are saying about the promise and hopefully, rejuvenation of the Kings organization in the time since coming aboard.

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