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SAN FRANCISCO — Brandon Williams could miss the Golden State Warriors’ Nov. 18 game against his former team, the Dallas Mavericks, after an MRI on Tuesday showed a mild left hamstring strain.
Golden State will re-evaluate Williams in a week, which puts that checkup on the eve of the game at American Airlines Center. ESPN’s Anthony Slater, who first reported the strain, said the Warriors will be without the reserve guard for a five-game road trip that opens Wednesday in Houston and runs through Dallas. The team has not set a status for the Mavericks game.
The scan found no tears or structural damage, and Williams will not need surgery, a source close to him told the San Francisco Chronicle.
Brandon Williams Exits Early In Golden State Warriors’ Win
Williams got into Monday’s game against the New Orleans Pelicans late in the first quarter and scored on his first two drives. He came up limping after the second layup and went to the locker room 99 seconds after checking in. Golden State went on to win 138-87 at Chase Center for its eighth straight victory, with two-way guard LJ Cryer playing 20 minutes and scoring 10 points in his place.
Warriors coach Steve Kerr spoke before the MRI results were in, with reserve guard Will Richard already out with a torn UCL in his left thumb. He called the injury a “big concern” and Williams “a huge part of our team.”
“It’s a hamstring,” Kerr said. “He’s going to get an MRI, so we’ll see how bad it is.”
Golden State had turned to Williams whenever Stephen Curry rested. He is averaging 10.4 points and 2.3 assists in 16.4 minutes this season, and he scored 17 and 20 points in the two games Curry missed.
Williams Moved To Standard Dallas Mavericks Contract After Kyrie Irving Injury
Williams was still on a two-way contract with Dallas when Kyrie Irving tore his ACL, and the Mavericks moved him to a standard contract in April 2025. He strained his left hamstring that fall in the preseason, then averaged a career-high 13.0 points and 3.9 assists over 66 games, missing time in March with tightness in the same hamstring. Golden State signed him to a one-year, $2.6 million deal in August, and he went back over his time in Dallas last week on NBC Sports Bay Area’s “Dubs Talk” podcast.
“I learned a lot,” Williams told the show. “Coming from a two-way [contract] and working my way up in the league, it’s always difficult. You’re going to have your days where it’s going to be good and getting days where it’s going to be bad, but you’ve got to have a good team around you, a good development crew, and Dallas had me ready for that for any given situation.”
“Unfortunately, [Irving] went down two years ago, and I knew I was ready on the spot just based on the work that was behind me and the team I had behind me,” Williams continued. “I knew I was ready to go into it, and at least until now, I got a standard contract and I got a foot in the door. I can never be comfortable in this league, but now I got that confidence and having someone that I know here on the team as well gives me that much more confidence.”
Dallas is the fourth stop on the trip. Tip-off at American Airlines Center is set for 8:30 p.m. CT, with ESPN carrying the game.
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