JJ Williams (soccer)

Following his high school graduation, and before joining the team at Kentucky, Williams spent time in the National Premier Soccer League with expansion club Birmingham Hammers. He was not initially on the roster, but was added midway through the season and made his debut against Nashville FC on June 12.[18] In his second match for the Hammers, Williams was sent off in the 72nd minute of a 2–0 defeat against Chattanooga FC after a collision with Chattanooga goalkeeper Greg Hartley.[19] He finished the season with five appearances for Birmingham.

Ahead of his sophomore season at Kentucky, Williams joined Premier Development League club Reading United. He made his debut for the side on May 13, 2017, playing nine minutes in a 3–1 victory over Lehigh Valley United.[20] Williams scored his first Reading goal on May 20, a tally two minutes into second half stoppage time in a 3–2 defeat against New York Red Bulls U-23.[21] He scarcely appeared through the remainder of the season, however, closing his time with Reading with one goal from seven appearances.[20]

Williams returned to the Premier Development League ahead of his junior collegiate season, joining up with Dayton Dutch Lions. He debuted for the club on May 18, playing the full 90 minutes in a 1–1 draw against West Virginia Alliance.[22] On his fifth appearance, he scored his first goal for the Dutch Lions, a 19th-minute tally in a 3–1 defeat to Lansing United on June 9.[23] After scoring just once in his first eight games for the club, Williams pounded in seven goals in his last five appearances. Beginning with a two-goal game against Derby City Rovers on June 27,[24] he added a goal against Cincinnati Dutch Lions on July 3[22] and scored a hat trick against Cincinnati on July 13.[25] He added a goal in the playoffs against Chicago FC United, although Dayton fell by a 5–3 scoreline.[26] Williams scored eight times in 13 appearances during his lone season with the Dutch Lions.[22]

Ahead of the 2019 MLS Combine, Williams signed a Generation Adidas contract with Major League Soccer, making him one of seven members of the GA class.[27] He was selected by Columbus Crew SC with the 18th overall pick in the 2019 MLS SuperDraft, the second consecutive year that Columbus had drafted a Generation Adidas player (in 2018, the Crew chose Edward Opoku in the second round).[28] Williams made his professional and Crew debut on March 23, coming off the bench to replace Patrick Mullins against Philadelphia Union.[29] He received praise for bringing "some energy to the field" in his 35 minutes on the pitch.[30]

In order to get game minutes throughout the season, Williams spent multiple spells on loan with USL Championship club Birmingham Legion FC.[31] The first of those loan spells was announced on April 12, with Williams making his debut for the Legion the next day.[32] He replaced Chandler Hoffman in the 52nd minute against Saint Louis FC, going on to score two goals in a six-minute span to help Birmingham earn a 3–2 victory. Those marked the first two professional goals of Williams' career.[33] After a two-week spell back in Columbus, Williams rejoined the Legion on May 9 on a game-by-game basis.[34] He again returned to the Crew in late June, appearing off the bench in a home defeat against Sporting Kansas City on June 23;[35] following that match, Williams started the Crew's next three games as Gyasi Zardes was on international duty.[1][36] On July 13, the Crew confirmed that Williams would be sent back to Birmingham for his third loan spell with the Legion.[37] He would spend the remainder of the 2019 season in Alabama, helping the Legion qualify for the 2019 USL Championship Playoffs in their first year of existence. In the Eastern Conference play-in match against North Carolina FC, Williams provided the winning goal: his strike three minutes into stoppage time handed Birmingham a 3–2 victory in their first-ever playoff match.[38]

On the season, Williams played in 32 games and scored eight goals between the two clubs: nine appearances in Columbus, and the remainder coming while on loan in Birmingham.[39] He would not return for a second season in Columbus, however, being waived by the Crew on February 20, 2020. A lack of potential playing time, with Williams sitting fourth on the depth chart at the forward position, was cited by the club as the reason behind the move.[40]

Although Williams had been waived by the Crew, his rights were still owned by the league for another year, owing to his Generation Adidas contract. After passing through the league's waiver system on February 27, it was announced that he would return to Birmingham Legion for the 2020 season, officially on a loan from Major League Soccer.[41] The league retained the ability to recall Williams at any time if an MLS club had committed to signing him; they exercised that right exactly one week later. On March 5, Williams instead joined Atlanta United, arriving as a replacement for the injured Josef Martínez.[42][43]