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Boston Celtics: 2 teams that could benefit most from Robert Williams’ injury

By Mark Nilon

BOSTON, MA - DECEMBER 13: Giannis Antetokounmpo #34 of the Milwaukee Bucks dribbles while guarded by Al Horford #42 of the Boston Celtics during a game at TD Garden on December 13, 2021 in Boston, Massachusetts. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Adam Glanzman/Getty Images)
BOSTON, MA - DECEMBER 13: Giannis Antetokounmpo #34 of the Milwaukee Bucks dribbles while guarded by Al Horford #42 of the Boston Celtics during a game at TD Garden on December 13, 2021 in Boston, Massachusetts. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Adam Glanzman/Getty Images) /
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Boston Celtics Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports
Boston Celtics Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports /

Potential Boston Celtics opponent No. 1) Toronto Raptors

Robert Williams III has only been out for a little over a week now, and already we’ve seen the effect that his absence has had on the Boston Celtics.

Perhaps the most glaring example of the team missing their rising star big man actually came early last week when the C’s ventured up north to square off against the Toronto Raptors.

Now, yes, we fully acknowledge the fact that Boston was down three other core contributors in Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and Al Horford, and, because of this, it’s by no means fair to say that Williams being out was the main reason for why they went on to drop this hard-fought contest.

Having said that, throughout the game, it was evident that his presence down low was missed exponentially.

During the outing, we saw the Raptors do most of their scoring damage from within close range of the basket, as they went on to put up 66 of their 115 points within the painted area while shooting nearly 60 percent from this range as a whole and a whopping 70.8 percent when at the rim.

Conveniently, without Time Lord down low Toronto’s star big man, Pascal Siakam, went on to drop a season-high of 40 points, 34 of which came within the paint where he converted on 73 percent of such attempts overall from this range and an incredible 83 percent when at the rim.

As a whole, the Toronto Raptors are a bottom-12 3-point shooting team in regard to attempts, meanwhile, they rank within the top-5 when it comes to shot attempts down low.

There is a decent chance that these two teams could find themselves squaring off against one another right from the jump in round one and, should this happen, assuming Robert Williams will still be out for the entirety of the series, one should assume that the paint-happy Raps will look to attack the more often than not and, considering just how well things turned out for them during their last bout, coupled with the fact that, since the big man’s injury the C’s have been letting up shot attempts within five feet of the rim at nearly a 70 percent clip, Boston could find themselves struggling throughout this hypothetical seven-game stretch.

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