SuperSonics’ NBA Champion, Two-Time All-Star Gus Williams Dies
January 16, 2025
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Gus Williams, who helped bring Seattle its first and only NBA championship in 1979, has died. He was 71.
Williams, a shooting guard, spent 11 seasons in the NBA (1975-87) with the Seattle SuperSonics, Golden State Warriors, Washington Bullets and Atlanta Hawks.
In 825 career regular-season games, Williams averaged 17.1 points, 5.6 assists, 2.0 steals and 2.7 rebounds per game.
As noted by Jim Miloch on Twitter/X, Williams’ 19.5 points per game is the second-highest playoff scoring average of any retired player in NBA history (minimum of 90 games) who is not in the Basketball Hall of Fame.
Williams was named a second-team All-American at USC in 1975. He was subsequently drafted 20th overall by the defending champion Warriors.
Nicknamed “The Wizard,” Williams was the runner-up to Alvan Adams for the NBA’s Rookie of the Year Award in 1976. That year, he averaged 11.7 points per game for the Warriors in his first professional season.
LANDOVER, MD – CIRCA 1981: Gus Williams #1 of the Seattle Supersonics dribbles the ball against the Washington Bullets during an NBA basketball game circa 1981 at the Capital Centre in Landover, Maryland. Williams played… LANDOVER, MD – CIRCA 1981: Gus Williams #1 of the Seattle Supersonics dribbles the ball against the Washington Bullets during an NBA basketball game circa 1981 at the Capital Centre in Landover, Maryland. Williams played for the Supersonics from 1977-84. Wiliams has died at age 71.
Focus on Sport/Getty Images
Two years later, Williams signed with the SuperSonics, where he enjoyed the greatest success of his career.
Williams helped Seattle beat Washington in the 1979 NBA Finals, averaging 29.0 points in the five-game series. He carried that success over to the 1980-81 season, averaging 22.1 points per game and finishing eighth in MVP voting. Williams and teammate Dennis Johnson were named second-team all-NBA guards that season.
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Williams missed all of the subsequent season holding out for a new contract, then re-signed with Seattle in June 1981. He enjoyed his best season in 1981-82, making the first of two consecutive All-Star teams, averaging a career-high 23.4 points per game, and earning his only career first team all-NBA selection after the season.
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