On Saturday morning, wearing a gray sweat suit that contrasted with his sunny outlook, Jay Williams traded hugs and barbs with Bulls teammates he was seeing for the first time since his June 19 motorcycle accident.
By Saturday night, Williams rested on his crutches as he shared a pregame hug with LeBron James and then took a seat behind the Bulls’ bench.
Both snapshots, one from the Berto Center and one from the United Center, were part of a larger picture that revealed Williams’ determination to make good on his singular goal.
“I’m going to come back and play,” Williams said. “I went down to [noted sports surgeon] James Andrews in Alabama, and he was telling me that my knee is stable and it’ll be OK for me to play. There are a couple of things I have to weightlift for my nerve [damage]. But it’s going to come in time.
“It’s a matter of how hard I work and how much I want it. But I think I’m going to be back in this league pretty soon.”
For two days, Williams forgot all about the drudgery of rehabilitation from serious injuries and the fine print of contract settlements. That he visited Andrews and didn’t inform a frustrated Bulls management didn’t matter for one day either.
This weekend was all about giving Williams the opportunity to be back around the game he loves, to watch the sweat pour off his teammates from up close and to feel the rhythms of the sport that has shaped much of his life.
“The motivation is standing here right now, hearing the screeching of the floor, the balls bouncing everywhere, people talking,” Williams said. “That’s the motivation. This is what I’ve done my whole life. That’s what I look forward to doing again.”
Williams even ditched his crutches at one point Saturday morning to shoot some free throws on the Berto Center court, ignoring the bulky brace on his left knee.
When he arrived late Friday, Williams went near the site of his accident to visit the house of Kevin Bradbury, his friend and business manager. The intersection of Honore and Fletcher streets on the city’s North Side is where sobering reality intersected with Williams’ unspoiled existence.
“Of course, you start thinking about it,” Williams said. “But then you let it pass. I’m concentrating more on the positive. You can’t hold on to the past because then you can never live the present.”
This outlook contrasts sharply with Williams’ obvious despondency in the wake of the accident, which had those in his inner circle worried. It even sounded more realistic and less scripted than when he gave his first public interviews on the subject in late September.
“It’s weird because I just slowly let the accident go,” Williams said. “The busier I stay, the better off I am. The only thing I know how to do is work hard. That’s what I do every day.”
“It’s not just the coming back and playing basketball. This has been a life-changing event for me. It not only makes you realize how important some things are that you thought weren’t important. But there are a lot of things I took for granted in life. It’s a different world I’m in now. I have to keep working hard to get back to my dreams.”
And work hard Williams does. His physical therapist, Bob Bruzga, who accompanied him on the trip, said Williams undergoes rehabilitation five hours a day, six days a week at Duke Medical Center. This includes aquatic therapy, balance and endurance exercises and weight training.
“He has made great progress,” Bruzga said.
Bruzga said Williams could ditch his crutches in four to six weeks and could start running in late spring or early summer. A return to the NBA is another story.
“It’s a hard question to answer,” Bruzga said. “It’s way too soon to tell right now. We probably won’t know anything more until this summer, once he’s off the crutches and running again.”
Williams said he doesn’t believe his injuries will require further surgeries. And his weightlifting had his upper body looking fit.
He also confirmed he plans to return to Chicago sometime in January to continue his rehabilitation, leaving Durham, N.C., to do so. Williams said he will do so even when the Bulls reach a settlement on his contract that is to run through next season.
“We’ll discuss it when everything is settled,” Williams said. “I know that [GM] John Paxson has been a great guy. So has [club Chairman] Jerry Reinsdorf. They way they’ve stood by me through this situation has been awesome. They could’ve cut me right at the beginning. Hopefully, they’ll give me a little more time and I can show them I’m going to play again.
“I love this city. I love the people here. I have great friends and teammates here. These guys are always going to be my teammates no matter what.”
