Post#1568 » by Elrod is Back » Fri Jan 25, 2019 5:19 pm
Williams is a world-class athlete, arguably in the first tier of 6-10 or taller players in the league today, and the first tier includes no more than three or four other guys. He also has an unreal wingspan, which make his defensive potential absolutely off-the-charts.
The issue with all bigmen is whether they really love to play basketball, whether they are hyper-competitive, and whether they are willing to work their asses off. If the first two conditions are met, the third condition usually is answered in the affirmative.
Let's face it, if you are 6-9 or taller you are probably playing basketball whether you like it or not as a teenager. If you are a good athlete you definitely are. It is great. You are no longer a geek but now you are a star jock. Women suddenly find you a lot more attractive. Guys think you are smart and cool. Your teachers cut you slack in school if that is not your thing. Life is sweet.
But that wears off after a while and those three conditions kick in. NBA history is littered with gifted big men who never panned out because they did not really like the game that much and they were not competitive individuals. Think of Darko Milicic or Patrick O'Bryant for recent Celtics examples. Or endless lottery washouts like Benoit Benjamin, Joe Barry Carroll, Hakeem Thabeet, Meyers Leonard off the top of my head. The list goes on and on and on. The list of bigs who had much less athletic ability but were workaholic hyper-competitive basketball fanatics is likewise telling: Kendrick Perkins, Ben Wallace, Bill Laimbeer, Clifford Ray. That list goes on and on too.
Of course, when you get someone who meets the three conditions and is also a mind-bending athlete, you get a superstar for the ages: Bill Russell, Hakeem Olajuwon, Kevin Garnett, Tim Duncan, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
The jury is still way out on Williams, as far as I am concerned. The hopeful signs: he seems to have a surprisingly good feel for passing, which suggests to me that his basketball IQ may account for some of his defensive prowess, not just crazy athleticism.
It is also good that the Cs are bringing him along slowly so he will develop good habits. The worst thing that could happen to Williams would be to go to a **** team where he played a lot and never learned any discipline because he was "the man," and driving fans wild with his blocks and dunks. An example of that phenomenon would be Antoine Walker, who played early on and was the best player on the team and who was completely satisfied with himself and never improved. Walker washed out of the league by age 30, when he should have been in his prime.
The grounds for concern are what seems like a lethargic gait as he proceeds down the floor, and the ease with which he is pushed out of the way for rebounds. You would hope that a guy like Williams, who rarely gets on the floor and then usually for brief shifts, would play like there is no tomorrow. Instead he sometimes appears more like Mark Blount than Kevin Garnett or Marcus Smart or Dave Cowens. The intensity wavers.
But some guys are just wired that way and it masks a competitive rage. Kareem and Walt Frazier were like that. That, to me, is the issue that will determine what sort of career he has. The sky is the limit, but the Philippines League is also in sight.
