Former NBA Pro Jay Williams: NCAA Needs 'Monumental' Change
*By Michael Teich*
After a motorcycle accident ended his basketball career in 2003, former Blue Devils standout and Chicago Bull Jay Williams found a new calling.
Williams was a one-time NCAA champion and second overall pick in the NBA draft, but more than a decade later he's built an extremely successful career as a full-time game and media analyst for ESPN.
"I don’t look at it as a tragedy. I look at it as a gift," he told Cheddar Wednesday of his athletic career-ending accident.
Williams's latest project is new YouTube Originals docu-series "Best Shot," executive-produced by LeBron James and his business partner Maverick Carter. The series, which debuted last week, follows Williams in his new post as a member of Newark Central High School's boys basketball coaching staff. The 8-episode doc, Williams said, exposes the tough challenges young athletes faceーon and off the court.
Although his accident doesn't define him, Williams tells Cheddar he views it as an opportunity to make an impact on the sports world. Earlier this year, he weighed in on the latest debateーwhether college athletes should be paid for court time. He thinks it's about time players get a share of the nearly $1.1 billion in revenue that the NCAA earned last year. He even called for an outright player boycott of the NCAA's Final Four tournament in a [Twitter video](https://twitter.com/RealJayWilliams/status/968643972288704513) last February. Williams's video followed the example of other big names in sports like his TV-partner LeBron and ex-player and fellow ESPN analyst Jalen Rose.
Williams may be optimistic about change, but he knows that it may take a while.
"It’s going to take something monumental to happen."
For more on this story, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/jay-williams-gives-his-best-shot-in-new-youtube-docu-series).
In stories sure to move markets next week, investors will be served another full plate of earnings, the July jobs report comes out, and the Summer Olympics continue in Tokyo.
Cleveland’s Major League Baseball team finally has a new moniker, the Guardians. Formerly known as the Indians, the organization made a change to the team name after years of public scrutiny and claims of appropriation of Native American culture. Cheddar’s Hena Doba and Baker Machado provide some additional details into the name change.
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