The Time Lord: Welcome Robert Williams!

Billy Kennedy is the kind of coach who you think just needs top notch talent to do well. Then he gets it and you see that’s not true at all. That he didn’t get maximum effort out of Williams should surprise no one! Brad alone will do wonders with him and Al, especially, and the rest of players will finish the rest. This is the first post-lottery pick I’ve been excited for in a long time!

Gant · Post #468 » by **Gant** » Fri Jun 29, 2018 10:38 pm

The Celtics tried to trade up to draft Williams when he slipped out of the lottery.

“When he was not drafted (in the lottery) we immediately knew that here was a guy who we had rated higher and was starting to slip,” Ainge said. “So we started making phone calls and checking out the possibilities of moving up in the draft.”

In the end, Ainge couldn’t move up in the draft. But, in the end, it didn’t matter as the Celtics were able to snag the 6-foot-9, 245-pounder with the 27th pick.

“We were fortunate he was still there,” Ainge said.

http://www.providencejournal.com/sports/20180629/celtics-draft-pick-williams-has-long-impressed-ainge

Leprechaun18 · Post #469 » by **Leprechaun18** » Sat Jun 30, 2018 5:16 am

I think the talk about his lack of a motor is BS. Watching his film its evident that he had a very good motor when defending or rebounding. Its also evident that the Aggie offensive scheme didn't use him well. Thus he was sometimes confused and hesitant on offense. Some peeps were writing bad things about Jaylen Brown's motor and his BBIQ when he came out. Subpar coaching can do that to players.

ConstableGeneva · Post #470 » by **ConstableGeneva** » Sat Jun 30, 2018 7:45 am

Rob looks really good via the metric below. Appropriate that his nickname is a synonym of "steal."

Read on Twitter

Theocy · Post #471 » by **Theocy** » Sat Jun 30, 2018 9:30 am

Green_teamer wrote:
Wes-J wrote:
Parliament10 wrote:

Officially tantalized.

Interesting they still have lockers for Shane larkin and Greg Monroe

And Baynes. I think it would be silly to take them down it's like anouncing you're done. It would be cool if they had framed a name ending in Rd so they just **** with us and cause panick

Floody23 · Post #472 » by **Floody23** » Sat Jun 30, 2018 10:07 am

Excited about this kid, if he can work on the things that put him as low as pick 27 the sky is the limit for him.
I can really see Tatum, Brown & Williams leading this franchise to huge success.

Manu Fisch · Post #473 » by **Manu Fisch** » Sat Jun 30, 2018 10:56 am

As excited as I have been for a mid-low range draft pick for some time.

A successful first year for Robert would be made up of:
- 10-15 mins off the pine;
- short burst energy off the bench;
- show some ability to guard the penetration off the switch;
- be able to bang for short periods with stronger bigs;
- keep working on his touch around the paint and maintain 50% FGP; and
- the odd highlight play here and there.

Another aspect of Robert's arrival that will be intriguing will be how Yabu responds. Hopefully it he will report to camp in shape, and these two will battle each other for minutes.

cloverleaf · Post #474 » by **cloverleaf** » Sat Jun 30, 2018 11:14 am

https://www.bostonglobe.com/sports/celtics/2018/06/29/big-blessing-join-celtics-robert-williams-says/pA4AHRkRBXOevfepkCqMcI/story.html

Yeah, the same 7'6" wingspan of Perk -- and twice the leaping ability. And a better passer with a better feel for the game.

Also, much, much closer to an NBA body than Perk came in with. They just had to work on that with Perk his first season in the league.

radcot · Post #475 » by **radcot** » Sat Jun 30, 2018 1:07 pm

cloverleaf wrote:https://www.bostonglobe.com/sports/celtics/2018/06/29/big-blessing-join-celtics-robert-williams-says/pA4AHRkRBXOevfepkCqMcI/story.html

Yeah, the same 7'6" wingspan of Perk -- and twice the leaping ability. And a better passer with a better feel for the game.

Also, much, much closer to an NBA body than Perk came in with. They just had to work on that with Perk his first season in the league.

Yes, and Perk entered the NBA straight out of high school. Only appeared in 10 games for garbage minutes in his rookie year. He needed a couple of years before becoming a contributor. With 2 years of college experience, Williams is MUCH more advanced in basketball knowledge, experience, and conditioning even though he's only a year older than Perk was as a rookie. He WILL contribute in his rookie season. The only question is how soon.

ConstableGeneva · Post #476 » by **ConstableGeneva** » Sat Jun 30, 2018 1:20 pm

radcot wrote:
cloverleaf wrote:https://www.bostonglobe.com/sports/celtics/2018/06/29/big-blessing-join-celtics-robert-williams-says/pA4AHRkRBXOevfepkCqMcI/story.html

Yeah, the same 7'6" wingspan of Perk -- and twice the leaping ability. And a better passer with a better feel for the game.

Also, much, much closer to an NBA body than Perk came in with. They just had to work on that with Perk his first season in the league.

Yes, and Perk entered the NBA straight out of high school. Only appeared in 10 games for garbage minutes in his rookie year. He needed a couple of years before becoming a contributor. With 2 years of college experience, Williams is MUCH more advanced in basketball knowledge, experience, and conditioning even though he's only a year older than Perk was as a rookie. He WILL contribute in his rookie season. The only question is how soon.

If everyone's healthy, minutes would be hard to come by with Horf, Aron, and Theis ahead of him. I guess it would depend on how quick he's able to grasp and execute the defensive scheme, which is difficult for a big. Theis got by mostly by giving full effort. I'd be surprised if Williams exceeds 400 minutes for the entire season if frontcourt is relatively injury-free.

cloverleaf · Post #477 » by **cloverleaf** » Sat Jun 30, 2018 3:59 pm

ConstableGeneva wrote:
radcot wrote:
cloverleaf wrote:https://www.bostonglobe.com/sports/celtics/2018/06/29/big-blessing-join-celtics-robert-williams-says/pA4AHRkRBXOevfepkCqMcI/story.html

Yeah, the same 7'6" wingspan of Perk -- and twice the leaping ability. And a better passer with a better feel for the game.

Also, much, much closer to an NBA body than Perk came in with. They just had to work on that with Perk his first season in the league.

Yes, and Perk entered the NBA straight out of high school. Only appeared in 10 games for garbage minutes in his rookie year. He needed a couple of years before becoming a contributor. With 2 years of college experience, Williams is MUCH more advanced in basketball knowledge, experience, and conditioning even though he's only a year older than Perk was as a rookie. He WILL contribute in his rookie season. The only question is how soon.

If everyone's healthy, minutes would be hard to come by with Horf, Aron, and Theis ahead of him. I guess it would depend on how quick he's able to grasp and execute the defensive scheme, which is difficult for a big. Theis got by mostly by giving full effort. I'd be surprised if Williams exceeds 400 minutes for the entire season if frontcourt is relatively injury-free.

Under 5 minutes a game on an 82-game schedule? I think they'd like him to have more. A good 15 minutes a game after midyear, for example, so he has the experience to be a useful club in Brad's playoff bag. Baynes and Theis don't necessarily need that many minutes and ol' man Horford should be tapered some in both minutes and games played to keep him fresh for the playoffs. I could see Williams averaging 15 minutes a game in 60 games, for a total of 900 minutes--if he stays healthy. The only thing that could really gum it up for him would be if Yabs came into SL with a slimmed down body and much improved game. Unfortunately, not too likely.

ThirtyFour · Post #478 » by **ThirtyFour** » Sat Jun 30, 2018 4:08 pm

Man,.... there is something about this guy that I irrationally think he is going to be a star based on a few interviews and some highlight reels. Binky potential. Can he be used in a trade any time soon, I don't want to get too attached.

ThirtyFour · Post #479 » by **ThirtyFour** » Sat Jun 30, 2018 4:10 pm

cloverleaf wrote:
ConstableGeneva wrote:
radcot wrote:
Yes, and Perk entered the NBA straight out of high school. Only appeared in 10 games for garbage minutes in his rookie year. He needed a couple of years before becoming a contributor. With 2 years of college experience, Williams is MUCH more advanced in basketball knowledge, experience, and conditioning even though he's only a year older than Perk was as a rookie. He WILL contribute in his rookie season. The only question is how soon.

If everyone's healthy, minutes would be hard to come by with Horf, Aron, and Theis ahead of him. I guess it would depend on how quick he's able to grasp and execute the defensive scheme, which is difficult for a big. Theis got by mostly by giving full effort. I'd be surprised if Williams exceeds 400 minutes for the entire season if frontcourt is relatively injury-free.

Under 5 minutes a game on an 82-game schedule? I think they'd like him to have more. A good 15 minutes a game after midyear, for example, so he has the experience to be a useful club in Brad's playoff bag. Baynes and Theis don't necessarily need that many minutes and ol' man Horford should be tapered some in both minutes and games played to keep him fresh for the playoffs. I could see Williams averaging 15 minutes a game in 60 games, for a total of 900 minutes--if he stays healthy. The only thing that could really gum it up for him would be if Yabs came into SL with a slimmed down body and much improved game. Unfortunately, not too likely.

Not to worry, he's been 'working out' with Jared Sullinger on the DL.

Post #480 » by **Darth Celtic** » Sat Jun 30, 2018 4:19 pm

I know it's part of being a fan of my team, but is it odd I feel better about our pick than the Bulls pick regardless of draft position?