Boston Celtics: Reliability will be key to a role for Robert Williams

Robert Williams will need to be reliable in every way if he is going to have a role on the Boston Celtics

No matter where you are picked, it is always going to be difficult for a rookie to have a role on a championship contending team, especially one with as much talent as the Boston Celtics currently have. When that contending team is picking 27th in the draft, it is hard to expect even the smallest amount of minutes for the rookie.

With Robert Williams, however, the Celtics might have found the exact rookie they needed in order to get some sort of contributions out of him. Williams fills a role that no one on this roster is capable of, and there is little doubt that Brad Stevens can make use of his elite athleticism on defense.

Keep in mind, Williams was projected to go in the lottery by a lot of people, and landed in a near ideal situation. Williams can be one of the best rebounders on this team, and his interior presence on defense can be the best of this rookie class.

When you are looking to get your initial minutes with Brad Stevens, it all starts with defense. The Celtics have more than enough offensive talent, so defense is going to be a major priority off the bench. Williams is an option that can do a lot of different things on defense, and the key will be consistency in any way the Celtics need him on that end.

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If Williams is even close to a liability on that end, then he could end up spending more time with the Maine Red Claws. If, however, he can bring consistency and reliability on that end, then he could carve out a real role off the bench.

Williams needs to prove that there is not going to be an adjustment period on defense. He needs to be able to come in and use that incredible length and athleticism to bring resistance in the paint. His versatility and how many different things he can be trusted to do on that end will dictate the extent of his role.

The Celtics have a lot of small ball options, and it is hard to find reliable defenders in the front court in this situations. Keep in mind, the Celtics already have options off the bench in Daniel Theis and Semi Ojeleye who are proven commodities on defense.

Williams, however, has the kind of athleticism and versatility to surpass them. What Williams can offer, is reliability in a lot more ways than those ahead of him. He needs to be able to hold down some of the toughest bigs in the NBA, while being agile enough to defend on the perimeter.

If Williams struggles in any area on defense, and is not completely reliable in everything that Stevens asks of him, there is not going to be room for him to have a role. Williams needs to be able to do it all on defense, but he does not have to be truly elite in all ways.

The Celtics do not need Williams to truly excel in any area, but they need to be ale to trust him in any position they want to put him in. He has the physical tools to have that kind of impact, but if he is struggling in any area, it will not be worth it to give him minutes.

The same goes for offense. The Celtics do not need him to be a shooter and they do not need him to create anything. What they need is someone that can finish. Williams is going to be in a position to get a lot of easy looks, and he needs to be able to hit all of them.

He is never going to see any kind of volume, but the Celtics need to be able to trust that he will finish when it is needed. The Celtics cannot afford to be giving minutes to a player who is slowing them down in any way, and Williams just has to hit his easy shot close to the rim to do that.

There are a lot of different ways he will need to be reliable, but if Williams can be sound in all the areas that he is supposed to be good, then he will be valuable in his rookie season.

His athleticism and versatility gives him more options than any other front court defender, and he can separate himself if he is reliable in many different positions. Even as a rookie, they will be asking a lot of Williams on defense. He does not need to be a truly elite defender to begin with, because the standard is not that high coming off the bench.

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If, however, he struggles in any particular area. If he is not able to use his vertical and wingspan to make up for height problems or if he is not fast and quick enough to stay on the perimeter, he will never be able to get any kind of consistent role in his rookie season. If everything works out, and he can be trusted to defend four or five different positions, he could be in line for a special rookie season.