Williams brings familiar face, game to Lopes

College basketball teams would often like to recruit a player who will become the best freshman in the conference.

Grand Canyon just added a player who already was that. Makaih Williams (pronounced "muh-KY"), this year's WAC Freshman of the Year, is transferring to GCU from UT Arlington, where the 6-foot-1 combo guard was a starter who showed shooting and speed with years of upside to come.

"Makaih really fits GCU as a player and a young man," Lopes head coach Bryce Drew said. "He had great success in the WAC this year and will give us immediate scoring and speed. We are looking forward to having him be a Lope."

Williams, who is from Long Beach, California, started in 30 of his 34 appearances last season and averaged 10.8 points, 2.8 assists, 2.9 rebounds and 0.9 steals in 24.4 minutes per game for GCU's WAC Tournament championship opponent.

Only two other freshmen in the nation (Kentucky's Rob Dillingham and Mercer's David Thomas) averaged more points than Williams last season while also playing 30 games and less than 25 minutes per game.

"I like the coaching staff and how together everything was with the culture," Williams said of choosing GCU in the transfer portal. "From playing against them and seeing them up close, I know how well I could fit in the system.

"I feel like I could be at GCU for at least two years and really develop. That's my goal."

Williams also adds a boost to the Lopes' 3-point shooting after GCU had its best Division I season yet (30-5) despite 33.6% team shooting from 3-point range. Williams made 45.3% of his 3-pointers in his freshman season, when he would have ranked third nationally for 3-point percentage if he had made enough 3s to qualify for NCAA statistical leaders. He went 43 for 95, including four games with three made 3s. His game goes beyond shooting with blow-by speed and good use of his body on drives while carrying a competitive, high-character personality.

When GCU played UT Arlington in a Dec. 2 WAC home opener, Lopes guards Collin Moore and Ray Harrison were surprised Williams was a freshman and told him on the court that they thought he would win WAC Freshman of the Year.

When the teams met again for the WAC Tournament championship and the Lopes' third win against the Mavericks, Moore approached Williams in warmups and said, "I told you that you were going to win it." Now, Williams will be teammates with Moore and Harrison, who are returning to pursue GCU's third consecutive NCAA tournament berth.

"When we played them, I could tell how close they were and how together they were," Williams said. "That was something I like about the whole thing."

Williams played at Capistrano Valley Christian High School in San Juan Capistrano, California, before attending a post-graduate school, Future College Prep, where he averaged 21.7 points, 7.9 rebounds and 6.4 assists per game.

The slew of colleges recruiting him included Wyoming, where second-year GCU assistant coach Marc Rodgers was recruiting Williams at the time. Rodgers made a lasting impression that reconnected when the Lopes were interested in Williams once he entered the transfer portal. The freshman already knew what Global Credit Union Arena and its Havocs atmosphere have to offer after having a 10-point game there in December.

"I love those type of environments," Williams said. "I want to be in the NBA, and that's basically an NBA-type environment. It was my first time there. I didn't know how loud it would be or how many people would be there, but it was fun."

Williams, who plans to join summer workouts in Phoenix, has two areas that he knows he will be able to enhance at GCU – his defense and his faith.

"With my faith in general, having that there at GCU played a big part," Williams said. "I want to grow my faith and have that environment around me all the time. You can see it there."

Grand Canyon University Athletics

Players Mentioned

Ray Harrison

Collin Moore

Makaih Williams

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