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Amari Williams

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Amari Williams
Williams with Kentucky in 2024
No. 77 – Boston Celtics
PositionCenter / power forward
LeagueNBA
Personal information
Born (2002-01-28) 28 January 2002 (age 24)
Nottingham, England
Listed height6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)
Listed weight250 lb (113 kg)
Career information
High schoolMyerscough College
(Preston, Lancashire)
College
NBA draft2025: 2nd round, 46th overall pick
Drafted byOrlando Magic
Playing career2025–present
Career history
2025–presentBoston Celtics
2025–present→Maine Celtics
Career highlights
  • 3× CAA Defensive Player of the Year (2022–2024)
  • 2× First-team All-CAA (2023, 2024)
  • Third-team All-CAA (2022)
  • 3× CAA All-Defensive Team (2022–2024)
Stats at NBA.com Edit this at Wikidata
Stats at Basketball Reference Edit this at Wikidata

Amari Williams (born 28 January 2002) is a British professional basketball player for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA), on a two-way contract with the Maine Celtics of the NBA G League.

He played college basketball for the Drexel Dragons and the Kentucky Wildcats. Williams was selected by the Orlando Magic with the 46th overall pick in the second round of the 2025 NBA draft, but was immediately traded to the Celtics.

Early life

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Williams grew up in Nottingham, England and initially attended Trinity School, Nottingham.[1] and played for his local team the Mansfield Giants. He transferred to Myerscough College when he was 16 years old.[2] Williams primarily played football when growing up.[3]

College career

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Drexel

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Williams began his college career with the Drexel Dragons. He was named the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) Defensive Player of the Year and third-team all-conference as a sophomore. Williams repeated as CAA Defensive Player of the Year and was named first-team all-conference while averaging 13.7 points, 8.8 rebounds, and 2.2 blocks per game.[4] As a senior, Williams averaged 12.2 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks per game and was named the CAA Defensive Player of the Year for a third straight season.[5] After the end of the season, Williams decided to utilize the extra year of eligibility granted to college athletes who played in the 2020–2021 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic and entered the NCAA transfer portal.[6]

Kentucky

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Williams transferred to Kentucky.[7] He averaged 10.9 points, 8.5 rebounds, 3.2 assists, and 1.2 blocks per game while starting in all 36 games he appeared in.[8] In 2025, his Wildcats finished with a 24-12 record. Williams' collegiate career ended with Kentucky's 78-65 loss to Tennessee in the 2025 NCAA tournament Sweet 16.[9]

Professional career

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Boston Celtics

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Williams was selected in the second round of the 2025 NBA draft with the 46th pick by the Orlando Magic and traded to the Boston Celtics.[8] He participated in the 2025 NBA Summer League for the Celtics.[10]

On August 15, 2025, Boston Celtics announced that they had signed Williams to two-way contract.[11] On February 5, 2026, Boston signed Williams to a two-year, $2.7 million standard contract.[12] He made 22 appearances (including two starts) for Boston during the 2025–26 NBA season, recording averages of 1.4 points, 1.8 rebounds, and 0.5 assists.

On June 29, 2026, it was reported that Williams' standard contract team option was being declined by Boston.[13] On July 2, the Celtics signed Williams to a new two-way contract.[14] Williams participated in the 2026 NBA Summer League as a member of the Celtics.[15]

National team career

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Williams has represented Great Britain in international competitions at the under-16, under-18, and under-20 levels.[16]

Career statistics

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Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high

NBA

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Regular season

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2025–26 Boston 2226.6.500–.7141.8.5.1.51.4
Career 2226.6.500–.7141.8.5.1.51.4

Playoffs

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2026 Boston 102.0.000–.5001.0.0.0.01.0
Career 102.0.000–.5001.0.0.0.01.0

College

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2020–21 Drexel 1504.0.429.000.5711.0.6.1.31.1
2021–22 Drexel 281720.6.521.500.6327.31.1.62.09.5
2022–23 Drexel 303027.4.523.267.6068.82.31.42.213.7
2023–24 Drexel 323222.9.517.333.6557.81.9.81.812.2
2024–25 Kentucky 363622.8.561.250.6238.53.2.61.210.9
Career 14111521.4.529.300.6287.42.0.81.610.4

References

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  1. ↑ Malcolm, Rod (7 August 2018). "Meet the six foot eight 16-year-old who's a rising star in the basketball world". Nottingham Post. Retrieved 25 October 2024.
  2. ↑ Simpson, Ariel (14 January 2022). "Drexel basketball duo's bond stretches from across the pond". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved 25 October 2024.
  3. ↑ Story, Mark (17 October 2024). "Why a 7-foot Englishman could be the key to Mark Pope's first Kentucky men's basketball season". Lexington Herald-Leader. Retrieved 25 October 2024.
  4. ↑ Leuzzi, John (21 April 2024). "Who is Amari Williams? Mark Pope, Kentucky basketball land Drexel star F, per reports". Courier Journal. Retrieved 25 October 2024.
  5. ↑ "Drexel's Amari Williams earns third CAA Defensive Player Award". The Philadelphia Inquirer. 7 March 2024. Retrieved 25 October 2024.
  6. ↑ Gabriel, Kerith (12 March 2024). "Drexel star forward Amari Williams to see what the NBA draft and NCAA transfer portal might offer". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved 25 October 2024.
  7. ↑ Borzello, Jeff (21 April 2024). "Agent: Drexel transfer Amari Williams commits to Kentucky". ESPN.com. Retrieved 25 October 2024.
  8. 1 2 Geagan, Matt (26 June 2025). "Celtics draft Amari Williams in second round of NBA Draft". CBS Sports. Retrieved 5 July 2025.
  9. ↑ https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/players/amari-williams-2/gamelog/2025
  10. ↑ https://www.cbsnews.com/amp/boston/news/celtics-summer-league-roster-hugo-gonzalez-amari-williams-nba/
  11. ↑ "Celtics Sign Amari Williams to Two-Way Contract". NBA.com. August 15, 2025. Retrieved August 15, 2025.
  12. ↑ "Celtics' Amari Williams: Inks standard pact with Boston". cbssports.com. Retrieved March 4, 2026.
  13. ↑ https://www.cbssports.com/fantasy/basketball/news/amari-williams-team-option-getting-declined/
  14. ↑ https://www.nba.com/celtics/news/press-release-20260702-celtics-sign-amari-williams-to-two-way-contract
  15. ↑ https://www.celticsblog.com/boston-celtics-news/143080/celtics-summer-league-roster-hugo-gonzalez
  16. ↑ "Williams Selected to Represent Great Britain in World Cup Qualifiers". DrexelDragons.com. 23 June 2022. Retrieved 25 October 2024.
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