Shelden Williams is an American former basketball player, who was nicknamed ‘The Landlord’ when he played for Duke University’s basketball team, Duke Blue Devils. While in college, Williams received two consecutive National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Defensive Player of the Year Awards.
Age, Early Life, and Education Background
Shelden DeMar Williams hails from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and was born under the Scorpio zodiac sign on 31 October 1983, which makes him 40 years old as of 2023. He’s one of the sons of Jeanette Williams and the high school basketball coach and former collegiate basketball player, Bob Williams. His brother, Quincy, is an American Football linebacker.
Shelden attended Midwest City High School where he joined the school’s basketball team. He was a standout player and won many accolades at the national and state levels, including crowned Oklahoma Defensive Player of the Year in 2000 and 2001. Shelden was a member of both the Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) and National Honor Society (NHS) organizations while in high school. In 2002, he matriculated to Duke University, where he began his collegiate career, and was schoolmates with the American former basketball player, Jonathan Clay, who is best known as JJ Redick. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Sociology and a certificate in Markets & Management in 2006.
High School and College Careers
While playing basketball at Midwest City High, Williams was named Gatorade Oklahoma Player of the Year in 2001 and 2002, USA Today Oklahoma Player of the Year in 2001, and was also ranked at position 49 of the best high school basketball players in the nation by ESPN.com. Moreover, he was named the Best Forward by the online magazines, PrepStar and Basketball News, while he was in high school.
Williams played for Duke Blue Devils from 2002-2006. In January 2006, he became the third player to ever record a triple-double when his school’s team played against Maryland. Before his graduation, he held the record of Duke’s all-time leader in rebounds and blocked shots (422). He also received various awards including an Associated Press (AAP) First Team All-American in 2006.
Professional Career
Williams was selected by Atlanta Hawks in the 2006 NBA Draft, signed a rookie scale contract with the team on 10 July 2006, and made his NBA debut on 1 November – his first game was against the Philadelphia 76ers. While playing for the Hawks, Williams was named the Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month, and later NBA Rookie of the Month in April 2007. The Oklahoma native left the Atlanta Hawks for Sacramento Kings in 2008, but in February 2009, he was traded alongside Robert ‘Bobby’ Brown to the Minneapolis-based Minnesota Timberwolves in exchange for Calvin Booth and Rashad McCants. Subsequently, he joined Boston Celtics in 2009, Denver Nuggets in 2010, and New York Knicks in 2011.
Before his exit from NBA, Williams played for the New Jersey Nets in 2011 and 2012. He thereafter signed a 12-month contract with French League team Élan Chalon, with which he averaged 7.6 rebounds and 11.3 points per game. In October 2013, Shelden signed with the Chinese team, Tianjin Ronggang, with whom he played until 2015.
After retiring from professional basketball, Williams began serving as an assistant coach for the NBA G League team, College Park Skyhawks. He then started coaching the Erie BayHawks in 2018.
Shelden is a two-time gold medalist – he won one of the medals in the 2005 Summer Universiade team competitions which took place in Izmir, Turkey.
In 2019, Shelden created the Shelden Williams Foundation, which empowers and supports student-athletes by delivering initiatives aimed at promoting physical and emotional health through education, sports and community involvement.
Shelden is active on Instagram (@sheldenwilliams) with almost 20,000 followers. He joined Twitter in June 2019 and is currently followed by around 35,000 fans under his handle @SheldenWilliams – the Oklahoma native is active on Facebook.
Personal Life
Williams walked the aisle with the American basketball player Candace Parker on 13 November 2008. Parker, who is widely known by the nickname, ‘Ace,’ plays for the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) team, Las Vegas Aces, and is considered one of the best WNBA players of all time. The couple welcomed a daughter named Lailaa Nicole Williams in 2009. Shortly afterwards, they bought a 7,000-square-foot home in the Encino neighborhood of San Fernando Valley, California, for around $3.56 million, but the couple separated in November 2016, and in April 2018, Williams filed for a divorce citing irreconcilable differences, and went on to demand spousal support as reported by TMZ Sports. Candace agreed to pay him $400,000 in alimony and shared the proceeds from the sale of their Encino home (sold at $3.75 million).
In late 2019, William’s ex-wife exchanged vows with the Russian basketball player, Anna Petrakova, and announced that they were expecting a child in December 2021. The news came shortly after she came out as a member of the LGBTQ+ community. Petrakova gave birth to a son named Airr Larry Petrakov in February 2022.
Height, Weight, and Physical Appearance
Shelden is of Afro-American ethnicity and has black hair and a pair of dark brown eyes. He stands at a towering height of 6ft 9ins (2.06m) and weighs approximately 250lbs (113kgs).
Net Worth
Williams’ basketball career has made him famous and wealthy. During his tenure in the National Basketball Association (NBA), Williams accumulated at least $12 million in salary payments. His net worth is approximately $8 million as of 2023; on the other hand, his ex-wife Parker, is worth around $5 million.
Shelden William’s Ex-Wife, Candace Parker – Brief Biography
Candace Nicole Parker was born on 19 April 1986, in St. Louis, Missouri, and is 37 years old as of 2023. She began playing basketball in high school, becoming the only woman to win two Gatorade National Girls’ Basketball Player of the Year Awards in 2003 and 2004. Parker played for the University of Tennessee’s basketball team during her college days, and led it to two national championships in 2007 and 2008; she primarily plays center and forward positions.
The WNBA squad, Los Angeles Sparks, selected her as the first overall pick in the WNBA draft in 2008, and was named WNBA Rookie of the Year in 2008. She played for 13 seasons with the team before joining Chicago Sky for two seasons – she won a championship with each team. Nicole has won two WNBA MVP Awards (2008 and 2015), and two Olympic gold medals, in 2008 and 2012.
After her WNBA career, Parker served as a commentator and analyst for Turner Sports, and covered NBA games on NBA TV and TNT.