March 23, 2013
Ray Williams, who reached the NBA Finals in 1985 with the Celtics, died Friday in a New York City hospice, according to his wife, Linda. He suffered a stroke Wednesday while undergoing treatment for late-stage colon cancer.
Williams, 58, an 10-year NBA veteran, led the New York Knicks in scoring over the first four years of his pro career after starring at the University of Minnesota with Kevin McHale, Mychal Thompson, and Flip Saunders.
His teammates on the 1984-85 Celtics included McHale, Larry Bird, and Robert Parish.
Williams, who averaged 15.5 points and 5.8 assists in his NBA career, fell on hard times later in life and was homeless in 2010 when the Globe wrote about his plight. With help from McHale and Bird, he regained his financial footing and married Linda Crawford.
Williams was living in Florida before the Knicks paid for a jet to transport him last month to Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York.
A funeral will be scheduled in Mount Vernon, N.Y., where he grew up with his brother, Gus Williams, an NBA All-Star in the early '80s.
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