‘Lemon Pepper Lou’ is retiring from the NBA. After not being picked up by a team in the 2022–2023 NBA season, Louis Williams will hang up his jersey and retire as an Atlanta Hawk. Williams has played 21 seasons in the NBA since being drafted in 2005. He leaves it as perhaps the greatest sixth man the league has ever seen.
Similar to Jamal Crawford, Williams was an above-average shooter with an advanced dribble package and a great inside game for his size. Towards the end of his career, Williams also became the prime veteran on the team and acted as a mentor for all the young stars on the team, on and off the court. Lou-Will was a team favorite and someone who flew under the radar of most fans.
Lou Williams won three Sixth Man of the Year awards.
Lou Williams is rightfully considered the greatest sixth man in NBA history. This is backed up by the fact that Williams won three Sixth Man of the Year awards in 2015, 2018, and 2019, respectively. In his prime playing for the Los Angeles Clippers, Willaims averaged over fifteen points off the bench and was one of the leading scorers of the team.
GREATEST 6 Man of All Time…
Man… my favorite player finally retired. What a career for Lou Will man, countless memories and moments. Changed the culture as a Clipper legend. The streets will never forget Sweet Lou 🔥 Happy retirement Louis Williams 💯#Underground🐐 https://t.co/jnX2jG5eOl pic.twitter.com/11BHfto3mo
— Lou Will Burner 🥶 (@LouWillBurner23) June 18, 2023
In 2023, Williams will have a net worth of about $16 million. Considering that he played 21 seasons in the NBA, this number does seem a bit low, but we have to remember that he was always given a role player/fringe star salary, and in his twilight years, he was only given the veterans minimum. Williams also has a lifetime signature shoe deal with PEAK, a Chinese sportswear manufacturer, but the amount that he makes from this partnership is undisclosed.
In terms of his stats, Williams was in his prime when he was playing for the Los Angeles Clippers from 2017 to 2020. In his first season with the Clippers, Williams averaged 22.6 points, five assists, and 2.5 rebounds. That was why he was such a valuable asset at the time.
In those days, there was no one more reliable to give you 20 off the bench than Lou Williams. He truly was the leader of the second unit and the greatest one to do so. One may throw names such as John Havlichek or even Kevin Mchale into the mix, but no one did it like Uncle Lou.
