Since Gus Williams was underrated when he played, it's not surprising that he wouldn't get much attention here. He was the engine of Seattle's fast break, he was clutch, and he was Seattle's leading scorer when they won the title, which is important for many people.
When Williams sat out, Seattle's fast break went with it:
“ ‘Losing Gus cut off our running right off the bat,’ says John Johnson, one of two starters who remain from the championship team. ‘Gus was an unusual player in that he was blessed with speed and quickness. He wasn’t a great defensive player, but he could jump around and apply so much pressure on you that you wouldn’t dare put the ball within two feet of him because he would take it away.’ ”
“Gus is so complete. He has that quickness and anticipation, takes the ball to the basket or passes with productive security. Worse for the opposition, when they get back fast enough to keep the Sonics from taking it inside on the break, Gus just picks it up and jump-shoots with that amazing suddenness and accuracy.”“Williams, because of equal skills as either a playmaker or shooter, is really two people. Gus can have the kind of game (25 points, several steals, two or three key rebounds) that jumps out at you from a box score. Or he can hammer his victims with intangibles so subtle that most fans will miss his magic completely.”“There are some who believe that Williams, at 28, is the best guard in professional basketball.” - Feb 5, 1982 I point out the date because Williams made First Team All-NBA that season.
I've always found it interesting that when people talk about the greatest fast break players, it of course starts with Magic, and people say Erving, Drexler, Worthy, Malone, Barkley, Marion, Pippen, Jordan, LeBron, Kidd, Nash, but no one ever mentions Gus Williams.
Don Nelson: “Gus is one of the best open-court players in the league. He’s head and shoulders above any other guard in an open court game.” - Apr 8, 1980
This was Magic's rookie season.
Kevin McHale: “I’ve never seen such quickness in my life as Gus Williams in the open court.” - Oct 16, 1981
Jack Ramsey: “He’s the best open-court player in the league. No one else in his class even comes to mind. You take him out of there and it puts pressure on the other people on Seattle. Without him, there are no easy baskets. But with him, the way he can take the ball to the basket or pull up for the jumper, your defense isn’t able to sag to the middle. He is simply the best.” - Jan 18, 1982
Magic is now in his third season, and, of course, Dr. J is in the league.
“Williams, who is the best open-court player in the league.” - Nov 27, 1982
Said in the season preview for the 1982-83 season.
“Williams is the league’s best open-court player” - Oct 28, 1984
Talking about Dr. J:
“When I get a rebound, I tend to look to him [Erving] right away, because in my mind, he, Gus [Williams] and Magic are the best open-court players there are” - Feb 14, 1983
Erving, Gus Williams and Magic are the best open-court players there are. Those were the three, yet everyone talks about Magic and Erving when talking about players who were great in transition, but no one ever mentions Williams. That needs to stop. His contemporaries knew he was in that class, but, unfortunately, the people who came after don't know it, and his name gets lost to history.
In 2003, one writer listed his 12-man all-playoff team of the last 25 years:
GUARDS: Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan, Reggie Miller, Dennis Johnson and Gus Williams.
We're going to flop the pattern here, in part because Dennis Johnson and Williams might be the most underappreciated clutch backcourt in NBA history. Williams was a superb performer, incredible in the final minutes of a game. He had Bird's confidence and was so cool he seemed to be whistling while he worked over defenders. Gus was the soul of the potent Seattle teams of the late 1970s and early '80s. At 6-2, he averaged a shade over 20 points a game in the regular season, a shade over 23 in the postseason. Since Gus Williams just got a vote, I thought I'd put some stuff out there that I happen to have. I know Dr Mufasa's posted about him a couple times, but since I only saw stats, I thought I'd put some contemporary opinion out there.
