Boston Celtics: It’s Robert Williams’ time to shine

With the Boston Celtics trading away Daniel Theis on Thursday’s trade deadline, third-year center Robert Williams was already in line for a bigger role moving forward. On Friday, Williams seized that opportunity with veteran Tristan Thompson still sitting due to COVID protocol, and he turned in arguably his best all-around game of the season.

Williams was instrumental in Boston’s solid 122-114 victory over the third-place Milwaukee Bucks. The 23-year-old center’s energy seemed boundless, and he was just as effective on defense as he was on offense.

On the night, Williams stuffed the stat sheet, contributing seven points, nine rebounds, six assists, five blocks, and two steals in his first start of the season.

Then on Saturday night, Williams earned his second start of the year, chipping in nine points, 14 rebounds, and totaling two blocks, steals, and assists.

After those performances, it’s clear that Williams will be counted on as more than a role player for the remainder of the season. Even when Thompson returns, “Time Lord” should still see an increase in his minutes, something we’ve been pushing for here at the Houdini for quite some time.

It finally looks like it’s Time Lord’s time to shine.

Williams has been the Boston Celtics’ most efficient player for basically the whole season. His Player Efficiency Rating of 27.0 remains the highest on the team by a long shot, and he has easily the highest true shooting percentage (72.5%) of anyone on the roster. His defensive box plus/minus of 3.3 is also the best on the team by a wide margin.

That efficiency was on display on Friday night’s win over the Bucks, as Williams’ plus-19 was the second-best on the team, trailing only Marcus Smart‘s plus-20 performance.

Saturday night wasn’t quite as efficient of a game for Williams, but he still had a huge effect on the game, leading the team in offensive rebounds (5) and finishing one point away from his fifth double-double of the season.

In his two starts, Williams has averaged eight points and 11.5 rebounds while getting at least two steals, blocks, and assists in each game.

He may not be the flashiest player on the court, nor is he going to lead the charge on offense. It’s clear, though, that Williams is thriving with his increased minutes, and he’s part of the reason why Boston has looked better the last couple of games.

It’s evident that Williams looks to be in line for a much more sizeable role the rest of the season. If his first two games since the Theis trade are any indication, then he’s ready for primetime.