Alumni Spotlight: John Williams

By Mike Gore

For the past few years Bulldog basketball fans have been seeing a familiar face when they watch college basketball games.

John Williams enjoyed a Hall of Fame career for the Bulldogs from 2007-2011, helping lead Asheville to the 2011 Big South Conference championship and a trip to the NCAA Tournament. No Bulldog fan will ever forget Williams' spectacular dunks and blocked shots. His six blocks in the 2011 Big South Championship win over Coastal Carolina are still a league record. John was inducted into the UNC Asheville Athletics Hall of Fame last year.

Since graduating from UNC Asheville in 2011, John has been busy succeeding in several areas. He played for the world-famous Harlem Globetrotters for several years. John started a High Intensity Camp, which helped boys and girls basketball players improve their games both on and off the court. Numerous players have been helped by John's camps and received college scholarships.

John then became the girls' basketball coach at Asheville Christian Academy when he left the Globetrotters. Despite never having coached, John led the Lions program for nine years, winning two state titles and being the runner-up two other times. His last state title in 2022 was an incredible coaching job as ACA had only six players yet won the state championship.

And John is a husband and a father. When he heard the wonderful news that his wife Whitney was pregnant with their first child, John decided it was time to stop playing for the Globetrotters.

When he returned home and started coaching, another opportunity opened up – broadcasting.

"I'd never really thought about broadcasting, but the folks at WLOS asked me to help out on their Thursday night high school football broadcast," stated Williams. "I had never done any broadcasting, but the advice I got was to be prepared and be yourself."

UNC Asheville came calling next. With their ESPN+ broadcasts of home Bulldog basketball games, the school needed a new analyst for the last part of the season.

"UNC Asheville had somebody leave, and they suddenly needed someone to fill in for the rest of the season. I was delighted to work with my alma mater," remembered Williams. "I did the last six games and really enjoyed working with Matt Stradley (UNC Asheville video play-by-play announcer). I told Brian Hand (UNC Asheville's Associate Athletic Director) that if needed me next year to call."

UNC Asheville called the next year, and suddenly, a broadcast career was beginning. A career that John was quickly enjoying.

"One thing I wanted to do to be a better broadcaster was to accept any assignment. If you need me to do a pickle-ball tournament, call me because it's another opportunity to work on my craft," said Williams.

John's work was being noticed regionally as he began working Furman and USC Upstate games. Then, the Big South asked if he could broadcast its conference basketball tournaments.

"I really enjoyed the opportunity to broadcast the Big South basketball tournaments. It was a challenge because I had to prepare for multiple games," stated Williams. "Luckily, with my UNC Asheville work, I learned a lot about the teams."

And his work didn't go unnoticed. John had been exclusively doing games that were being streamed on ESPN+. He then got a huge opportunity when Mark Simpson from the Big South asked him to do color commentary on the Big South Conference women's basketball championship game that was being broadcast on ESPNU in 2022.

"Getting to do a game on linear TV was a huge break for me," said Williams. I had done plenty of games that were streamed, but to do a game on one of the ESPN networks was an incredible opportunity."

"I just thought John would be perfect to do color on our women's championship game," said Simpson. "He had done a great job for us with the tournament. John knew the teams very well, and for us, it was great to have someone who had been a student-athlete in our conference help tell our story."

John did a great job, and the ESPN bosses in Bristol took notice. The following year, he was doing 15 games, mostly around the Southeast, but he's been sent to Las Vegas a couple of times, as well.

Preparation. John does a great deal of work before every game he broadcasts, whether it's a UNC Asheville home game on ESPN+ or a nationally televised game on ESPNU.

"I watch a lot of tape, and I'll have close to 10 pages of notes on each team for a broadcast," declared Williams. "I probably only use one page or two, but I have the information in case I need it or my play-by-play partner needs it."

Watching the tape helps John understand what each team is trying to do.

"What I watch for is what each team is trying to accomplish offensively and defensively. Do they like to run on missed shots, or is their offense more deliberate?" explained Williams. "I want to know what their philosophy is on out-of-bounds plays. I try to study the players and what they want to do in certain situations. I want to make the viewer know everything they can about the teams playing and the players who are playing in the game."

John was still coaching at ACA as his broadcasting career was elevating. He finally had to step down as the Lions coach after last season. John couldn't thank his assistant coach, Joey Harrell, another Bulldog (Class of 2007) enough.

"As my broadcasting career grew, I had to miss some games from time to time," stated Williams. I was so lucky to have Joey Harrell as my assistant coach, and he filled in for me during practice and some games. Joey was so supportive, and I'm forever grateful to him for helping me out."

The basketball season keeps John busy, but that's fine with him.

"I'm having a blast doing the games. I was lucky enough to play college basketball, and the ability to broadcast these games keeps me close to the game," stated Williams. "I consider myself very lucky."

University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics

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