TUESDAY, 11:39am: The signing is official, the team announced. The contract will cover five games, against the Knicks, Nuggets, Warriors, Timberwolves and Jazz.
MONDAY, 2:59pm: The Suns plan to sign Alan Williams to a 10-day contract, reports Shams Charania of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). The big man who went undrafted out of UC Santa Barbara this past summer is a Phoenix native who led the Chinese Basketball Association in rebounding, as Charania points out. The 23-year-old Williams posted 20.8 points and 15.4 rebounds in 29.9 minutes per game for Qingdao in the months after making summer league appearances for the Rockets and Hornets. Phoenix has two open roster spots and is in line to save money with the Sixers reportedly poised to claim Sonny Weems off waivers, so the Suns have no shortage of flexibility for the Williams deal, which would cost a paltry $30,888.
Williams impressed on Houston’s Las Vegas summer league team, earning All-Tournament Second Team honors after putting up 20.5 points and 11.8 rebounds in 27.8 minutes per contest over four appearances. It was a breakout performance after Charlotte gave him only 8.1 minutes per game in the Orlando summer league. Still, he was on NBA radars before that. He posted double-figure rebounding averages in each of his final three seasons in college and worked out for the Suns, among other NBA teams, before the draft.
Phoenix is dabbling heavily in short-term deals with only 12 players signed through at least the end of the season. The Suns already have point guard Phil Pressey on his second 10-day contract, which expires Thursday night. Williams is about to become the sixth player to sign a 10-day contract with the Suns this year, as our 10-day Tracker shows.