Ziaire Williams was a buy-low signing for the Los Angeles Lakers, but he possesses the capabilities to be a talented 3-and-D player. And there is no better way to showcase his skills than back home in California.<\/p>\n
Williams attended Sierra Canyon High School, where he was teammates with a young freshman named Bronny James. Originally from Lancaster, the 24-year-old forward is excited to reunite with James in Los Angeles to hopefully win on a bigger stage.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s going to be fun playing with Bronny again,\u201d Williams said on the Lakers YouTube channel<\/a>. \u201cWe grew a lot together at Sierra Canyon and we\u2019ve been friends ever since. So, it\u2019s been cool to see him make it to the big leagues and keep progressing, keep getting better and I\u2019m excited to be back on his team again.\u201d<\/p>\n Team chemistry obviously plays a massive factor in winning basketball games, but it is also nice to have familiarity when entering a new situation. For Williams, he is set to play for his third organization, but he gets to return home for the first time.<\/p>\n Williams and James both have something to prove this season as they look to show they can contribute to championship-caliber basketball. Williams showed flashes of it during his first three seasons with the Memphis Grizzlies and more recently with the Brooklyn Nets, while James saw spot minutes in the first round of the playoffs for L.A. last year.<\/p>\n The goal of the Lakers\u2019 offseason was to bring in younger talent amid LeBron James\u2019 departure. There are intriguing players on the team and hopefully, all these new pieces fit together to kick off this new era for the Lakers.<\/p>\n Ziaire Williams: \u2018super surreal\u2019 to be playing for hometown Lakers<\/p>\n When Williams was let go by the Nets, he quickly became a target for the Lakers in free agency. Los Angeles lacked quality talent on the wing, specifically fitting that 3-and-D archetype.<\/p>\n Through five seasons, Williams has shown he can be a positive perimeter defender despite his slim stature. In addition, he needs to become a more consistent spacer as a 3-point shooter, but he looks forward to playing for his hometown team<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cSeeing my name on the Lakers jersey was super surreal, a blessing,\u201d Williams said in a Get to Know interview on Lakers YouTube. \u201cI can\u2019t even explain it into words I\u2019m just so excited to be back home, playing in front of the fans, my family and I never would\u2019ve imagined this day would come true. 8-year old me is doing backflips right now. It\u2019s crazy, I just can\u2019t wait to play a real game. I\u2019m ready to play right now.\u201d<\/p>\n