PORTLAND — Don’t expect Deron Williams to make the same mistake Raymond Felton did.
“I got my license to carry in like 26 states, but I’m not bringing my gun to New York City,” Williams said before the Nets practiced at UCLA on Tuesday and before they traveled up the coast for Wednesday night’s game with the Trail Blazers. “I know better than that.”
Felton, the Knicks’ starting point guard, was charged Tuesday with criminal possession of a weapon in the second, third and fourth-degrees.
New York has among the strictest state laws on gun control in the country.
“It’s a tough situation,” Williams said. “I wish the best for Ray. I know Ray well. That’s tough for him.”
Williams and Felton have a lengthy history, going back to being high- school point guards in the same recruiting class in 2002. Felton, a South Carolina native, wound up going to North Carolina, while Williams went to Illinois after finishing up his high-school career in Dallas.
Williams and Felton squared off in the 2005 national championship game, won by Felton’s Tar Heels. Williams was taken third in the 2005 draft by the Jazz, two spots before Felton was selected by the Bobcats.