Boston Celtics: unlocking Robert Williams’ playmaking potential

Robert Williams has been one of the Boston Celtics biggest surprises of the season thus far. However, he might only be scratching the surface of his potential as a playmaker.

One of the biggest surprises in the NBA last season was the emergence of center Bam Adebayo of the Miami Heat. He basically made Hassan Whiteside expendable for the South Beach squad, and has proven to be one of the most versatile and explosive big men in the league today. He combines a long, explosive build with touch and ball handling ability rarely seen in players his size. This very blog was calling the Boston Celtics to acquire him in exchange for Jaylen Brown (good thing it never went that far).

He is a legitimate threat to grab a defensive rebound and lead the break the other way. He can run the offense from the top of the key. He can break down bigger defenders off the dribble. He’s a fantastic post to post passer working alongside Myers Leonard and Kelly Olynyk. Oh yeah, and he can also competently guard all five positions on the court.

However, this skill set was not always apparent with Adebayo, who’s currently in his third NBA season. Adebayo was drafted 14th overall by Miami in the 2017 draft. Coming out of Kentucky his defensive potential was always apparent, however offensively he was considered quite raw and projected to be not much more that a rim runner. Perhaps those ball skills were always there, overshadowed by his fellow star freshmen teammates De’Aaron Fox, Malik Monk, and Brad Callipari. In any case, Adebayo has blossomed into an effective ball handler and passer, presumably through putting in work over the summer.

I see a lot of parallels with Adebayo and Boston Celtics big man Robert Williams. Like Adebayo, Williams’ main appeal coming out of Texas A&M was his length and athleticism. However, surprisingly Williams has show himself to be quite a competent passer so far in his career. I don’t think it’s a stretch to think, given a few more summers of development, that Williams could be a similar threat. Perhaps as he gains the trust of Brad Stevens they will be more open to running some of the offense through him.

The main appeal of initiating offense through big men at the top of the key, much like what they currently do with Daniel Theis and with Al Horford last season, is drawing the opposing big man out of the paint. Williams is tall and lanky enough to see over the defense and hit cutting wings and guards, which could be quite potent considering the Celtics’ depth at those positions. Imagine Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum catching the ball in the low post, unperturbed by a lurking weak side big man.

That action all hinges on the offensive big proving themselves to be a threat to shoot the ball, otherwise the defending big can just sag off and let him shoot. Perhaps the development of that top of the key jumper is the first stage of Williams’ growth. For Adebayo, it seems to be the key to unlocking his playmaking. He increased his FG% from midrange shots from 26% his rookie year to 40% last season. This season, Adebayo is shooting nearly 43% from midrange and averaging a career high four assists per game.

Williams’ shot is quite raw at this stage, and the coaching staff has been working with him on refining his shooting form and building his confidence. They indicated to The Athletic they would be modeling his shot after former Boston Celtics big Rasheed Wallace, one of the best big man shooters of the last decade. Recreating his quick, high release would make Williams’ shot virtually indefensible.

Williams, to his credit, has shown at least a willingness to shoot that shot, and the key will be for him to build confidence and present himself as a threat. He’s also increasing his range incrementally, with 23% of his shots coming outside the paint this season compared to 17% last season.

Williams is already a plus rebounder and defender, and adding another level of offensive versatility will really unlock this Celtics front court. Only time will tell whether the Time Lord will take that next big jump.

Will Robert Williams piece it all together?

Perhaps.

Does he have the tools to do so?

Absolutely!