Former UC Santa Barbara star Alan Williams has signed a 10-day contract to play for his hometown Phoenix Suns, the team announced Tuesday.
Williams – who is the Gauchos’ all-time leader in rebounds and second all-time leading scorer – could see his first action Wednesday when the Suns host the New York Knicks. He averaged 17.3 points, 11.8 rebounds, 1.8 blocks and 1.2 steals and 1.7 assists per game as a senior in 2014-15. Following the year, he was named First Team All-Big West for the third consecutive season. The 2013-14 Big West Player of the Year led all of NCAA Division I in rebounding each of his final two seasons at UCSB.
“Alan has worked so hard for this opportunity and nobody deserves it more than he does,” said head coach Bob Williams. “This is very exciting for he and his family.”
Williams competed for the Houston Rockets in Las Vegas at the 2015 NBA Summer League. He was the league’s top rebounder at 11.5 per game and its third leading scorer at 20.5 points per game. Following the stint, he was named Second Team All-Summer League.
Williams recently returned after completing a full season with the Qingdao Double Star Eagles in the China Basketball League where he was the league’s leading rebounder and among the leading scorers.