Lakers’ Trade for Mark Williams Shockingly Rescinded

Ricardo Sandoval | Feb 8, 2025

Feb 5, 2025; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Charlotte Hornets center Mark Williams (5) lays in the basket over Milwaukee Bucks forward Bobby Portis (9) during the second half at Spectrum Center. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images / Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

The deal between the Los Angeles Lakers and Charlotte Hornets for center Mark Williams has shockingly been rescinded.

The Lakers announced, and Jovan Buha of The Athletic shared via X.

The Lakers say that the trade between the Charlotte Hornets and the Lakers has been rescinded due to failure to satisfy a condition of the trade.

— Jovan Buha (@jovanbuha) February 9, 2025

Buha went on to say the trade was rescinded because the Hornets failed to satisfy a condition of the trade.

This is a stunning turn of events in what was already a crazy week in the NBA.

The deal between the Hornets and Lakers, which took place on Wednesday night, centered Mark Williams from the Hornets. In return, L.A. was sending out guard Dalton Knecht, forward Cam Reddish, the 2031 first-round draft pick, and a pick-swap.

Williams was supposed to be the starting big man for the Lakers after they traded away Anthony Davis in exchange for Luka Dončić.; however, that will no longer be the case for L.A.

They will remain without a premier big man for the rest of the season, which does not help their odds of winning a title this season.

The center position for the Lakers remains the weakest link on the team.

The loss of Williams is determinant to the Lakers' chances this season, and now Dončić loses out on the lob threat he so desperately needed.

Williams, who stands at seven feet tall and appeared in 22 games (19 starts) for the Hornets this season, is averaging 16.0 points, 9.8 rebounds, 2.5 assists, and 1.2 steals in 25.0 minutes.

As for Knecht, he will now come back to Los Angeles after a roller coaster of a first half. In 48 appearances (12 starts) for the Lakers this season, Knecht averaged 9.4 points and 3.1 rebounds in 20.7 minutes and was recently selected to the 2025 Rising Stars Game as part of NBA All-Star weekend.

Knecht was selected with the 17th overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft by the Lakers out of the University of Tennessee. 

This also means the return of Reddish, who played a limited role for L.A. this season. Reddish appeared in 31 games (eight starts) for the Lakers this season, averaging 3.3 points, 2.0 rebounds and 1.0 steals in 18.1 minutes. 

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For more news and notes on the Los Angeles Lakers, visit Los Angeles Lakers on SI.