After All These Years, Jamal Williams Still Has Brandon Roy's Back

Former Washington basketball standout is part of the coaching dream team at Garfield High School, patiently working his way up the ranks.

Brandon Roy once had Jamal Williams posting up inside, as this wide-body presence who made Washington basketball opponents pay attention to him, which in turn enabled Roy to do his thing on offense.

Roy has his big man seated next to him now, still providing him with a buffer in the heat of the battle. Only this time it involves 16- to 18-year-old teens.

Williams is an assistant basketball coach for Seattle's Garfield High. He's part of Roy's six-person dream team staff, which includes yet another former Huskies standout, Tre Simmons.

Together, they've got the Bulldogs entered in another state tournament this week at the Tacoma Dome, pursuing a 15th championship, by far the most for any Washington high school. 

"It's definitely interesting," Williams said. "It's like we're back in college again, only we're the ones trying to figure things out. We consider ourselves high basketball IQ guys."

Sixteen years ago, Williams transferred into Washington from New Mexico and played for a pair of NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 teams, just missing out on bringing ultimate success to the Husky program. He was Roy's loyal wing man, averaging 13.4 points per game to the All-American's 20.1.

In his final college game, Williams scored a career-best 27 points, tossing in shots from inside and out, only to suffer a disheartening 98-92 overtime defeat to the Connecticut Huskies in Washington, D.C. 

"That's still a sore subject," Williams said. "We really felt if we had got past that game, we would have got to the Final Four. We thought we could have beat (eventual champ) Florida, too. We thought our style of play was so unique it caught people off guard."

Afterward Williams turned to pro basketball overseas for five years and it took him to Argentina, France, Iceland, Israel, Italy and the Philippines.

He stopped playing to have a family -- he has four kids -- and to enter coaching.

Roy randomly called him one day and encouraged him to come to Garfield and join Ed Haskins' coaching staff, and Williams shared in a pair of state championships.

When Brandon jumped in and became the Nathan Hale head coach, he hired Williams to his staff and then took him to Garfield, and together they collected a pair of state titles. 

Williams, who's an educator at an alternative high school in Seattle, serves as an AAU head coach during the summer. Yet he's content with his role as a Garfield assistant because it gives him the flexibility to be a dad. 

Long range, though, he wants to return to the college ranks and coach. 

"That's the goal," he said. "I'm working toward getting a college job. That's what I want to do."

Meantime, he brings another authoritative voice to Garfield practices, stepping in with his wisdom when needed.  

He's actually one of four former Husky basketball players at the high school, counting center Anthony Washington, who teaches but doesn't coach. Each of the others is a Garfield alum.

"I'm an honorary bulldog," Williams said.