Someday, Jason Williams will grow up.
Cut him some slack, he just turned 50.
Not to mention, there was plenty of blame to go around as to how the Gainesville Super Regional series between Florida softball and Texas Tech devolved into a Jerry Springer-like atmosphere. Florida fans weren’t at their best in reacting to perceived slights and the action on the field at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium. Neither were Tech fans.
But the lightning rod of the series was J-Will, the flashy, former Florida Gators point guard who entertained NBA arenas for more than a decade as “White Chocolate.”
Williams and his wife, Denika, still hold a grudge over Florida softball coach Tim Walton. They claim their daughter Mia was mistreated by the veteran UF coach, which led to Mia’s transfer to Texas Tech this past offseason. In a profanity-laced interview with The Sun, Williams referred to Walton as both a “liar” and “bad person.”
Mia Williams isn’t the first college athlete who didn’t get along with her coach. She also won’t be the last.
Regardless, Mia Williams exacted her revenge at the plate, going 3-for-7 with 2 home runs and 5 RBIs to help lead Texas Tech to a 2-1 series win and trip to the WCWS.
That should have been enough to prove the point. J-Will could have cheered politely in his seat and taken the high road, knowing that cameras and cell phones would monitor his every move based on his celebrity status.
Instead, J-Will acted like a clown, mocking the Gator chomp, running up and down the concourses and yelling into the ear and crowding the space of a Gator fan in a handicapped section, which resulted in a senior citizen UF fan being ejected and the section being roped off for the remainder of the series.
Yes, Mia Williams was hit five times by Florida pitchers, but much of that had to do with her propensity of crowding of plate. Walton said the goal was to pitch her inside throughout the series and claimed none of the five were intentional. Mia Williams took the plunks and set up her teammates, as a good teammate would.
J-Will’s complicated Florida Gators legacy
Jason Williams was the first true Florida basketball star under Billy Donovan. A Belle, West Virginia, native, Williams played alongside Hall of Fame NFL receiver Randy Moss on the same DuPont High basketball team. He transferred to follow Donovan from Marshall to UF in 1996.
After sitting out a transfer year, Williams dished 17 assists in a game against Duquesne, a program record that still stands. Later in that 1997-98 season, Williams led Florida to an 86-78 upset in Rupp Arena over eventual national champion Kentucky, scoring 31 points. But Williams lasted just 20 games at UF before being kicked off the team for failing multiple drug tests.
That didn’t hurt Williams when it came time for the NBA draft, as he was taken seventh overall in the first round of the 1998 draft by the Sacramento Kings. Williams went on to a successful 13-year NBA career, winning an NBA title with the Miami Heat in 2006. He was still used as a recruiting tool by Donovan throughout the early 2000s, coming back for games at the O’Dome during the NBA All-Star break.
Williams’ NBA career wasn’t without rocky moments. In 2000, J-Will was suspended five times for failing to comply with the league’s anti-drug program. In 2001, the league fined him $15,000 after he allegedly made racist slurs made toward Asian-American season ticket holders when the Kings played at the Golden State Warriors. In 2005, Williams was fined $10,000 following an altercation with Memphis Commercial Appeal columnist Geoff Calkins, after he was upset a quote attributed him was taken out of context about being happy that the Memphis Grizzlies were about to be eliminated from the NBA playoffs.
J-Will finished his NBA career with the Orlando Magic in 2011 and settled his family in Windemere, where Mia developed into a high-level softball recruit. Mia Williams was recruited by Walton and played at UF from 2023-25, blossoming in her sophomore year after playing through injuries as a freshman. She’s been even better as a junior at Texas Tech, socking 24 homers with a program-record 82 RBIs.
Jason Williams offered a mea culpa on social media on May 25, apologizing for “our side” and admitting Texas Tech fans said “some things we shouldn’t have said.”
It’s a good first step. But perhaps Williams should realize his “hey-look-at-me” actions took the spotlight off his daughter, where it belonged.
Stars should age gracefully. Jason Williams didn’t act like a star watching his daughter during the high-charged Super Regional series between UF and Texas Tech. Instead, he acted like a fool.
Kevin Brockway is The Gainesville Sun’s Florida beat writer. Contact him at kbrockway@gannett.com. Follow him on X @KevinBrockwayG1.
This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Jason Williams didn’t need to be the sideshow during Florida-Texas Tech series | Brockway
Reporting by Kevin Brockway, Gainesville Sun / The Gainesville Sun
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