Elliot Jerell Williams is an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 professional basketball

Basketball

Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...

 player with the Portland Trail Blazers

Portland Trail Blazers

The Portland Trail Blazers, commonly known as the Blazers, are an American professional basketball team based in Portland, Oregon. They play in the Northwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association . The Trail Blazers originally played their home games in the...

 of the National Basketball Association

National Basketball Association

The National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...

. He was selected with the 22nd overall pick in the 2010 NBA Draft

2010 NBA Draft

The 2010 NBA Draft was held on June 24, 2010 at the Theatre at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. The draft, which started at 7:00 pm Eastern Daylight Time , was broadcast in the United States on ESPN. In this draft, National Basketball Association teams took turns selecting amateur...

 by the Blazers.

Collegiate career

Williams received an NCAA waiver in August 2009 to play immediately for the Memphis Tigers in 2009–10 after playing for the Duke Blue Devils

Duke Blue Devils

Duke University's 26 varsity sports teams, known as the Blue Devils, compete in the Atlantic Coast Conference. The name comes from the French "les Diables Bleus" or "the Blue Devils," which was the nickname given during World War I to the Chasseurs Alpins, the French Alpine light infantry...

 in 2008–09. He was an all-academic selection in 2006 and 2007. Playing in a total of 68 career games with 46 starts, Williams averaged 11.1 points, 2.3 rebounds, and 2.2 assists.

2008–09 season (as freshman at Duke)

For the Blue Devils, Williams saw action in 34 of Duke's 37 games, starting in 12 contests, with 11 coming in the Blue Devils' final 12 games of the season (including ACC and NCAA tournaments), averaging 4.2 points and 2.3 rebounds. Williams also recorded 23 assists and 21 steals and shot 44.1 percent from the field, 25 percent from the three-point arc and 50 percent from the foul line in helping lead Duke to a 30–7 overall record, an ACC Tournament crown and an NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 appearance.

Professional career

Williams was selected 22nd overall in the 2010 NBA Draft

2010 NBA Draft

The 2010 NBA Draft was held on June 24, 2010 at the Theatre at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. The draft, which started at 7:00 pm Eastern Daylight Time , was broadcast in the United States on ESPN. In this draft, National Basketball Association teams took turns selecting amateur...

 by the Portland Trail Blazers

Portland Trail Blazers

The Portland Trail Blazers, commonly known as the Blazers, are an American professional basketball team based in Portland, Oregon. They play in the Northwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association . The Trail Blazers originally played their home games in the...

. After playing in the preseason for the Trail Blazers, Williams missed the 2010-11 season due to a knee injury.

External links

• Memphis Tigers bio