The Phoenix Suns have exceeded expectations on the whole of the 2025-26 season. Former Los Angeles Lakers center for a day, Mark Williams, has played a role in that success. However, on Tuesday night, in the Suns' Play-In matchup against the Portland Trail Blazers, his impact was minimal.
With the Western Conference's seventh seed on the line, the Blazers secured a nail-biting 114-110 win over the Suns in Phoenix. Much like Aang from Avatar, Williams vanished when his team needed him most. The Suns center played only 22 minutes, posting four points, four rebounds, three blocks, and two assists.
Williams left some fingerprints on the game in the first half, but was largely an afterthought for the Suns in the second half. Coincidentally, that is also when Phoenix really made their push to grab control of the matchup against Portland. When the Suns flipped the script, Williams sat on the bench.
The disappearing act is exactly the type of performance that Lakers fans would have crucified if it was Deandre Ayton delivering it. The difference there is that Los Angeles got Ayton at a discount in free agency. Williams would have cost Rob Pelinka plenty had the deal been finalized.
Walking back the Mark Williams trade ages better by the day for the Lakers
The Lakers earned themselves a player who will always root for their downfall when they told Williams his physical was not good enough to get him to Los Angeles. On the flip side of it, Lakers fans will constantly look for reasons to absolve their team of fault in that decision.
Williams' slippage in critical games and crucial moments will help the process of justification. Him being forgettable as the focal point of the frontcourt in those instances would have been brutal.
Pelinka and the front office had very few assets to play around with after landing Luka Doncic. There was always going to be a need to maximize those in building the roster around their new superstar. Williams would have cost Dalton Knecht, an unprotected first, and a pick swap to boot.
Not only that, but the Lakers would have also been on the hook to pay up for his next contract. Williams will be a restricted free agent in the summer of 2026 upon completion of his original deal signed as a rookie.
The Lakers may have kicked the can down the road on truly solving their issues in the frontcourt. However, the true viability of their initial reactive fix continues to be questionable enough that the rescinded trade looks more and more acceptable as time passes.
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