Post by jhb on May 10, 2021 9:20:18 GMT -5
Derrick Williams
PF
6'8"
235
20
Arizona
An extremely productive scorer in his two seasons at Arizona, Williams comes to TMBSL after a season where he hit an effective field goal percentage of .650 as a sophomore. While he has the tools to score at the next level, his long-term potential will depend on how he fills out the rest of his game.
Williams already has a well-developed body for his age and packs a lot of strength onto his 6'8" frame. He plays taller than his 6'8" height because of a relatively long wingspan and he's a very formidable leaper when he can't plant both feet. He's also very smooth and fluid for his size and weight, and he runs the floor like a wing player. He already has pretty good footwork and touch in the paint, the question is how well he will adapt to consistently posting up defenders that will likely have a size/length advantage and who can finally match him in strength pretty consistently. His face-up game is very good, and he compliments his ability to get to the basket by also displaying very good shooting ability...he is fairly consistent with his mid-range jumpshot and his mechanics are clean as he hit over 70% from the free throw line and over 50% from three as a collegian. While he has a smooth stroke, he still doesn't shoot a high volume from distance. That leaves him often in pretty good position to collect offensive rebounds and find second chance opportunities. One of the main areas Williams will need to improve to reach his tremendous potential as a scorer is dealing with double teams, as he sometimes had a tendency to scramble when doubled in college and force plays that lead to turnovers.
The biggest question about Williams is how he fits, especially on the defensive end. His size leaves him categorized more as a combo forward but his offensive skill-set will likely lead most teams to play him as a 4, especially since he's mostly played as a 4 since high school (despite insisting himself that he's a wing player). While this does lead some scouts to question whether he'll be as effective offensively and as efficient a scorer in TMBSL if he becomes more passive and starts trying to play more like a 3, most scouts think this will manifest issues for him on the defensive end. While he's a fairly fluid athlete for a 4, his lateral quickness is a bit sub-par relative to the rest of his athletic abilities so he will have some trouble staying in front of guys, especially if he drifts out to the perimeter. While he's got long arms for his size, he's still a short big man and likely won't be much of a threat to block shots or force steals at the next level. And while Williams does hunt for rebounds on offense, he doesn't have the same focus or intensity on the defensive boards and can sometimes be a bit of a liability there.