INTERVIEW : MARVIN WILLIAMS Interview by: C. Smith HTV: Alright, lets get the contract talk out of the way at the jump. You recently landed a big new deal, what was that whole process like for you to go through as a player? MARVIN: Obviously it's a weight off my chest. I am sure every player during contract time is feeling a little pressure and what not. It was an interesting process, but it didn't last as long as I thought it would which is very good and it worked out great for both sides. HTV: So you have to be psyched that you just got paid in a big way, right? MARVIN: Yeah, but I am more happy about continuing my career in Atlanta. Obviously every player wants to make as much money as they can, but I am very excited to still be playing in Atlanta. HTV: Were there other teams you seriously considered jumping to? MARVIN: No. I think Atlanta knew I really wanted to be there. I made it pretty clear at the end of the season that I wanted to return there and they made it clear to me that I was wanted back and I think they really showed that when it came time to negotiate. HTV: Did going to ball in Europe, which is very popular move right now ever enter into your mind? MARVIN: Not at this time. But you know what, I think that would be a great experience at some point in my life. I don't know when, maybe late in my career but at some point I think it would be an experience I'd like to try.
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HTV: Have Coach Woodson and GM Rick Sund talked to you about your role for the upcoming season?
MARVIN: I have spoken to coach Woodson once and I've spoken to Rick obviously a few times, but I pretty much know my role. This is my fifth year playing for Coach Woodson and I know what he expects out of me and I just try to go out there and do that.
HTV: So you're not feeling any extra pressure for the upcoming season because of the new contract?
MARVIN: No, not at all.
HTV: The Hawks made some nice upgrades over the summer by bringing in Jamal Crawford and Joe Smith, plus they brought back Mike Bibby. What are your thoughts on the roster for 2009-10?
MARVIN: I think we got better. You know the Eastern Conference has gotten so strong with Rasheed going to Boston and Vince Carter in Orlando now. Cleveland's also got Shaq. So teams have made big-time, big-time moves. Plus Philadelphia is going to have Elton Brand back so teams are really going to be good this year in the East. I think we did a great job of going out and signing a veteran big, and we got Mike back who's been our point guard for the last couple of years and that's huge. And Jamal Crawford, he can really score the basketball.
HTV: However, because of all the moves the Hawks made this summer it seems certain that Flip Murray will not be back in 2009-10. Flip was a very valuable player for the Hawks in 2008-09, talk about what his loss will mean to the team.
MARVIN: It's going to be tough. Flip was so big for us last year. He kept us in a lot of games and he even won a few games for us last year. Unfortunately if we don't get him signed back, it's going to be a tough blow for our team. But then again we got Jamal Crawford who could pick up that slack.
HTV: What have you seen of 2009 Hawks draft pick Jeff Teague so far?
MARVIN: I haven't really seen him play too much. I saw him play in the tournament and I saw him play Carolina (Teague's Wake Forest team beat #1 ranked UNC early in the 2009-09 college hoops season.) and I don't want to talk about that game (Laughs). He's an explosive point guard and he really knows what he is doing out there and I'm excited to have him on the team.
HTV: The Hawks organization has achieved something that is pretty rare in today's NBA. They've done a nice job of drafting and keeping together a core of talented young players and then adding pieces to that core. How important is that consistency to you as a player?
MARVIN: If you look at the NBA or even professional sports period, but especially the NBA, when you keep a core group of guys together, you really have a chance to do something special. Look at San Antonio; Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili have been together so long. Think about that Detroit Pistons team with Chauncey, Rip and Tayhsuan. They were together for so long. When teams do a good job making a commitment to the players I think it really pays off in the long run. Now with us being so young: myself, Joe and Josh, now we had a chance to grow together even more and that's really going to be valuable for our future.
HTV: Do you think the Hawks are ready to crash the Boston-Orlando-Cleveland party at the top of the Eastern Conference?
MARVIN: I would like to think so. I would definitely like to think so. We finished fourth in the East last year and a lot of guys had injuries. I missed 15, 16, 17 games from injury, especially late in the season which is really tough and we had a couple of other guys go down on our team. If we have a healthy year we're looking forward to getting that home court advantage for the playoffs.
Williams loves the idea that the core of the young, talented Hawks have
been kept in Atlanta by the front office and allowed to grow together.
HTV: The Hawks have seven nationally televised games on their regular-season schedule this year, equal to the total amount the franchise has had over the past 11 seasons combined. Have any thoughts on the Hawks moving into the NBA spotlight?
MARVIN: That's huge. Huge. I think every player loves top be on national television, but especially me being from the Seattle area, my family doesn't get a chance to see me play very often, so having all those games on national television is big. It's big for the Atlanta Hawks organization. It just shows people around the League and the world that we are getting better.
HTV: Do you have any 2009-10 games circled on the calendar already?
MARVIN: It would have to be those televised games (nationally). I am excited about those.
HTV: You seemed to have experienced the dreaded "injury bug" last season. How frustrating was that for you?
MARVIN: It got frustrating for me because when I was finally able to make it back from my back injury, then I fall down and hurt my wrist. That's when it got frustrating. Not being able to be there for your team during the playoffs, it's tough. They went out there and played hard without me and we were able to make the second round, but it was just tough watching it every night.
HTV: I've read online that you feel your back and wrist are back to 100% now. What was the key to you getting totally healthy again?
MARVIN: It was just rest. I finally got a chance to sit back and let my body rest and that was big for me.
HTV: Describe your emotions last year after the Hawks got swept by Cleveland in the second round of the NBA Playoffs?
MARVIN: It was disappointing the way we came out and got swept by Cleveland. It was a bitter sweet deal. Making the second round was huge, but obviously going out and getting swept was pretty tough for us, but it was another learning experience. We learned from the Boston series previous year and came back and made a nice jump. Hopefully this year we can do the same thing.
HTV: Are there one or two guys in the League that you really look forward to going up against?
MARVIN: I'll tell you any time I get to play against the old Carolina guys; it's always the most fun for me. Like Sean (May), Raymond (Felton) and Rashad (McCants) that's always the most fun for me.
HTV: What elements of your game have you been working on this off season?
MARVIN: Mainly I have been working on my ball handling. I am still trying to extend my shooting range so I am shooting a lot of threes. I'm trying to get better in both of those aspects of the game.
HTV: Where have you been working out this off season?
MARVIN: Chapel Hill. I'm in Chapel Hill every summer. I come back and work out with some of the guys (Former UNC players). There are some pretty good runs up here.
HTV: Did you get a chance to play in the NC Pro Am summer league much this year?
MARVIN: No. I was on a roster but I did not play. I was trying to let my wrist heal, but I've been out to watch a few games and had a good time.
Williams helped put the now legendary Seattle Rotary Select AAU (WA) program on the map.
HTV: Thanks to the Internet everyone got to see Lebron and Stackhouse get dunked on this summer by youngsters. What are you thoughts on those two flushes?
MARVIN: I didn't see Stack's, but I did see Lebron's. Man, everybody gets dunked on. If you are out there playing hard, it's something that happens. You're talking about world class athletes that can run and jump so if you are in the wrong place at the wrong time it can happen. It was blown way out of proportion as far as Lebron's dunk. It was a great dunk but it wasn't that big of a deal in my opinion.
HTV: Let's talk about you as a kid for a minute. You played for the powerhouse Seattle Rotary Select AAU program. Talk about that experience.
MARVIN: That was an experience. Coming up when I was playing with Seattle Rotary, we were trying to get on the map from a national standpoint. Aaron Brooks was a year up from me and I played with him one year. I played with Rodney Stuckey on that team and we kind of put our selves on the map and let people know that the Seattle area really has guys up there that can play basketball.
HTV: Confirm this summer legend for me...One year during the semifinals of the Las Vegas Big Time Tournament your Seattle Rotary squad trailed the Atlanta Celtics - whose lineup then included current NBA players Dwight Howard, Josh Smith and Randolph Morris - by 23 points at halftime. In the second half you went off and helped cut the lead to single digits before fouling out. As you left the floor you received a standing ovation from the crowd in the gym for your hustle and the 35 points, 11 rebounds and six assists that you tallied.
MARVIN: It's all true. That was a good game, a good game. Myself, Randolph and Josh still talk about it to this day. It was a big time game. Their team was so good that year, so good. They jumped out on us early and we tried to fight back and I ended up fouling out of the game. I had a pretty good game but we ended up losing which is the most important thing. That was a fun game for me. I was so exhausted I did not pay too much attention to it (the standing ovation). I was just trying to get a win and advance to the championship game.
HTV: Your high school career was so storied that Bremerton HS (WA) retired your jersey in February of 2009 . Describe that experience.
MARVIN: That was an experience, one of the most memorable times of my career. It was fun and good for me because I also got to go back and see my youngest brother play and he had a big game.
HTV: I also heard that you played high-school soccer. True?
MARVIN: True and I was terrible. I played goalie and I was awful. It was an experience and I enjoyed doing it. My best friend and I played and I had a good time.
HTV: I understand you held a part time job bagging groceries at the local supermarket until you went off to North Carolina. True?
MARVIN: (Laughs) True story. I got a job when I was 15 years old working at a grocery store called the "Red Apple". It was about five minutes from my house and I worked there until I went to college at age 17.
HTV: In your hometown of Bremerton, WA you're widely loved and people have openly professed to numerous media outlets as to what a great person Marvin Williams is and has always been. What is it like to be so respected back home?
MARVIN: Just to feel that kind of support from the community is huge. They supported me through high school and college and now in the NBA. It's always great when I get a chance to go back home.
Williams got the honor of having his Bremerton HS (WA) #24 jersey retired last February.
HTV: We understand you're also still very close with UNC head coach Roy Williams.
MARVIN: Ohh yeah. I just spoke with him last week. I spend a lot of time with him during the summer time. He still calls me during the season to and checks up on me and to make sure I don't need anything and to make sure I am doing okay. It's good to have that kind of support from a college coach. Especially when you leave a program (early). Sometimes when guys leave a program, they never hear from the coach again and Coach Williams is not like that at all. He still calls to make sure everything is going good with us.
HTV: Where do you keep your UNC national title ring?
MARVIN: (Laughs) I have it in a safe. I was actually talking to Sean May the other day and I was telling him that I have not seen my ring since I left college. It's been in a safe for four years now so I think I should look at it the next time I go home.
HTV: We understand you're scheduled to graduate from UNC soon?
MARVIN: Yeah. I hoping within the next two summers. I am just working slowly but surely but since I am up here training, I am trying to finish (my degeree).
HTV: I hear that you're tight with Josh Childress and keep in touch with him while he's over playing in Greece. Tell us a little more about your friendship with Josh.
MARVIN: Absolutely. Josh is a very good friend of mine. We became very close during the time we played together (in ATL). It was tough actually for me when he first left. That was my road dawg and that's who I spent most of my time with, so when he took off to Greece it was tough, but I was extremely happy for him. I was actually trying to get over there earlier this summer to see him, but it didn't work out. But hopefully one day I can get over there.
HTV: I understand that you have a Marvin the Martian tattoo on your arm?
MARVIN: Very True. It was my very first tattoo actually. It was supposed to be my one and only, but it did not turn out that way.
HTV: Do you have plans to add more ink any time soon?
MARVIN: I don't really plan to add tattoos. It's kind of a spontaneous deal for me. I just get in the mood and then get one.
Williams talks with UNC Head Coach Roy Williams often, but has not seen his NCAA
title ring in four years.
HTV: Is it true that you carried a Lion King backpack in high school?
MARVIN: True. It was my senior year. I didn't have too many books my senior year, so I just needed something to carry my stuff in.
HTV: I hear you're getting a car customized now through Adam and the fellas at Dreamworks Motorsports down in Carolina. What do you have brewing in the new ride department with them?
MARVIN: I not very much in to cars, but I just did buy a Dodge Challenger. I really like the new Challengers and Adam he does great job of fixing up cars for guys and right now he's in the process of fixing this one up for me.
HTV: What is your favorite thing to do in the ATL when you are relaxing?
MARVIN: Movies. I am a big movie guy.
HTV: What are you listening to on your iPod these days?
MARVIN: Right now it would have to be Young Jeezy. I have been listening to a lot of Jeezy lately. I can listen to anything at any given moment though. Three Days Grace to Fallout Boy to Lil' Wayne to anything.
HTV: Who do you dislike more -- Duke or the Boston Celtics?
MARVIN: Duke (Laughs). Absolutely!
HTV: Twitter or Facebook?
MARVIN: Neither.
HTV: iPhone or Blackberry?
MARVIN: That's a good one. I actually have both, but I am probably on my blackberry more then I am my iPhone.
HTV: Lebron or Kobe?
MARVIN:(Laughs & then a long pause). Ahhh…what's your pick?
HTV: (Laughs) Kobe. He's a stone killer with a host of rings and a better jumper, so he gets the nod.
MARVIN: I'll go with that to, so I'll take Kobe.
Despite the intense recent clashes with Boston, Williams still despises Duke
more then the Celtics.
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