The Baller
Williams was one of the top rebounders in the game before a broken leg ended his NBA career in 1999. So it should come as no surprise that effort and positioning are two of his focuses these days.
To Williams, that means attending recovery meetings daily to stay sober and gathering for Bible studies regularly, including one with his spiritual mentor, NFL Hall of Famer Curtis Martin. It also means, Williams says, keeping his inner circle tighter than ever and boxing out all the “yes men” who were in his life previously.
“I always had to have the biggest car and the biggest house,” Williams says about his life as an NBA player, “because if you have the biggest car and the biggest house, you got more friends, and more friends means less insecurity. B.S. It’s just the other way around. Now I got fewer friends, more security, less problems, more peace and plenty of God.”
“You know who ain’t going back to jail?” he adds. “Me. You know why? Because I’m with me. And I know me now and I know where I’m weak. You know what I’m saying? I don’t need nobody to tell me I’m not weak when I know I’m weak and I’m struggling every day.”
Williams also says he’s feeling great physically. He’s back down to his playing weight and looks like he could still bang on the blocks and grab a few rebounds. In fact, he says he has been schooling some up-and-comers in the NBA on and off the court. Which is why, even at the age of 44, he isn’t ruling out the possibility of attempting a comeback to the game he still loves.
What advice do you give them?
Don’t nothing good happen after 11:30. If you don’t get whatever you want by 11:30, you don’t need it. If Julius Erving would have tried to explain it to me when he was 40 and I was 20 — which he didn’t, and he’s a friend — I wouldn’t have listened. But these guys listen because I caused so much pain and lost so much that I’m not a cliché. I lived it. There ain’t no B.S. I ain’t go to jail for 30 days. I’ve been there. I’ve been to the mountaintop and I’ve been to the valley.
What do you want to do with your life next?
What I want to do people say I’m too old to do or too damaged to do. I say how old would you be if you didn’t know how old you were? I keep myself ready for whatever God has in store for me physically, mentally and spiritually. If I told you what I wish to do, you would think I’m crazy. But I keep myself physically ready at all times.
Are you talking about playing in the NBA again?
I love basketball and I love the NBA probably more than anybody. But my main focus right now is helping people.
Do you miss the game?
I miss the game dearly. I miss everything about the game. There’s so many things that if I ever can get my hand back on basketball again I’d explain to everybody how good it is and how to enjoy every minute of it. And try to tell these young folk how lucky they are. So to be able to play at their level when I’m working out with them and then still talk to them, you have their respect. But I need to pound with them to get my point across.
Could you see yourself involved in the NBA again?
I take it one day at a time with my sobriety and whatever God has in store for me. If I start looking too far ahead then I’m gonna start controlling things. I don’t wanna do that no more. I want to be the employee and let God be the employer. I can tell you one thing: I can honestly say I’m in better shape than I ever was in life.
Are you fully recovered from your leg injuries?
Running like a sewing machine. Smooth.
So you’re saying you’re ready for a comeback?
[Laughing.] I’m ready for whatever God has in store for me.
Article Appeared @http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/8431391/nba-jayson-williams-interview
Also Appeared @http://blackubiquity.com/sports-a-entertainment/item/10308-jayson-williams-speaking-freely