Frank Williams (basketball)

Infobox NBA Player
name = Frank Williams
position = Point guard
height_ft = 6
height_in = 3
weight_lbs = 212
league =
team =
nationality = USA
birth_date = birth date and age|1980|2|25
birth_place = Peoria, Illinois
highschool = Manual (Peoria)
college = Illinois
draft = 25th overall
draft_year = 2002
draft_team = Denver Nuggets
career_start = 2002
career_end =
former_teams = New York Knicks (2002-2004)
Chicago Bulls (2004-2005)
awards = Illinois Mr. Basketball (1998)

Frank Lowell Williams (born February 25 1980, in Peoria, Illinois) is an American professional basketball player. As a point guard, Williams has starred at both the high school and collegiate levels, as well as the NBA.

Williams attended Manual High School in Peoria, Illinois. He helped his team win two IHSA class AA boys state basketball tournaments, in 1996 as a sophomore and again in 1997 as a junior. In both tournaments, Williams was named to the five-player All-Tournament team. As a senior, Williams was named the 1998 Illinois Mr. Basketball. After high school, Williams attended the University of Illinois, and played three seasons for the Fighting Illini, leading the team to a string of NCAA Tournament appearances. After the 2000-2001 season, Williams was named the Big Ten player of the year, and received the Chicago Tribune Silver Basketball award.

The New York Knicks acquired Williams in a draft-day trade in 2002 from the Denver Nuggets. He played sparingly in his first season, but found a bit more time on the court during the first half of the 2003-04 season. Unfortunately, new GM Isiah Thomas then traded for star point guard Stephon Marbury, and Frank was relegated back to the end of the bench. The Chicago Bulls acquired him as part of a multi-player trade in the next off-season, but Williams showed up to training camp out of shape, and he spent most of the 2004-05 season on the injured reserve. Dissatisfied with his effort, the team announced that he would not be re-signed for the next season. Frank Williams signed with the Los Angeles Clippers on October 1, 2005 but was released four days later.

In November 2006, Williams was signed by the Sioux Falls Skyforce of the NBA Development League.

External links

* [http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/w/willifr02.html NBA Career Statistics at basketball-reference.com]
* [http://www.marchmadness.org/records/yearly/1996baa.htm 1996 IHSA Class AA Boys Basketball Tournament Summary]
* [http://www.marchmadness.org/records/yearly/1997baa.htm 1997 IHSA Class AA Boys Basketball Tournament Summary]