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Cavs: Former guard to make boxing debut on Jake Paul-Tommy Fury undercard

By Chad Porto

CLEVELAND, OH - JUNE 09: JR Smith #5, Iman Shumpert #4, LeBron James #23, James Jones #1, Deron Williams #31 and Richard Jefferson #24 of the Cleveland Cavaliers react in the third quarter after a play against the Golden State Warriors in Game 4 of the 2017 NBA Finals at Quicken Loans Arena on June 9, 2017 in Cleveland, Ohio. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images)
CLEVELAND, OH - JUNE 09: JR Smith #5, Iman Shumpert #4, LeBron James #23, James Jones #1, Deron Williams #31 and Richard Jefferson #24 of the Cleveland Cavaliers react in the third quarter after a play against the Golden State Warriors in Game 4 of the 2017 NBA Finals at Quicken Loans Arena on June 9, 2017 in Cleveland, Ohio. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images) /
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A Cavs alumni will debut on the Jake Paul-Tommy Fury undercard.

Cavs fans will remember Deron Williams for being one of the worst veteran players during the Finals Era teams led by LeBron James. Across the 2016-2017 regular season and playoffs, Williams played just 42 games and averaged 3.2 points during that stretch of games. Williams of course is most known for his time in Utah, where he was so obnoxious, his behavior forced Jazz legend Jerry Sloan to retire. When Williams finally found his way to Cleveland after stints in Brooklyn and Dallas, he was just 32 years old.

It would be the last time Williams played in the NBA.

Now Williams is 37 and looking at a new sports career; boxing. Currently, Williams is signed on to fight on the undercard of the upcoming Jake Paul vs. Tommy Fury event. Rather ironic, as Williams last played in Cleveland, and Paul is from Cleveland. Considering that Williams has been training in boxing and MMA for years and owns a stake in Dallas’ Fortis MMA, it’s not like this is completely out of the blue.

Who his opponent is might be, however.

An NBA All-Star to face off with an NFL Pro Bowler?

Williams may have been training for a fight for a while now, but that’s because the NBA stopped calling. His potential opponent for the fight is 38 years old and was still an active play-maker in 2020 despite his age and countless knee surgeries. That potential fighter is Frank Gore and he’s training for his boxing debut; despite three teams being interested in him still.

Now, Gore vs. Williams hasn’t been announced just yet, though many assume this is the fight to make. Both men have name value and have been training for the fight world for some time now, and considering the fact that Paul’s events are more about name value than talent, it makes sense to get two fairly large sports figures from the last 15 years and have them face off in the ring.

They’re not the first two high-profile sports stars to consider crossing over to boxing (or combat sports in general) but at least one of them finally has ties to Cleveland.

No one expects Williams to turn into Stipe Miocic, but hey, who knows, maybe he’ll actually be a competent boxer.

(*Update: Frank Gore has been confirmed for Deron Williams’ boxing debut.*)

Next. Halloween: The 3 scariest Cleveland Cavs players. dark

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