Getty Robert Williams III of the Boston Celtics looks on during the first quarter against the Philadelphia 76ers.
The Boston Celtics may hold the best record in the NBA at 27-12 and are viewed as the odds-on favorites to take home the Larry O’Brien Trophy in 2023 but their championship potential will be heavily influenced by the availability of the team’s core players.
Unfortunately for them, one of said players has a long-standing track record of being unreliable in this department.
Throughout his five years in Beantown, 25-year-old Robert Williams has proven to be an oft-absent member from the club’s main rotation, as his injury history has grown to be a well-noted aspect of his professional tenure.
Because he’s played just 182 out of a potential total of 347 games throughout his time in the league, the likelihood of him residing on the sidelines in street clothes hovers right around 50%.
For any championship-hopeful squad rotational consistency is a must, and, should Brad Stevens and company grow impatient with Williams’ lacking availability, an Eastern Conference executive recently told Heavy Sports’ NBA Insider Sean Deveney that they could consider pursuing the likes of New York Knicks big man, Mitchell Robinson, as a “new fit.”
“Williams is such a good fit for that team if he is healthy, I can’t see them making a move. But if you get to a point where, OK, this guy is not going to be healthy, they would have to look for a new fit. They would want a defense-first kind of guy who can pitch in on offense, and a guy like Mitchell Robinson in New York would be an interesting guy there,” the exec told Deveney.
6TH BLOCK OF THE NIGHT FOR MITCHELL ROBINSON
Like Williams, Robinson is a well-established athletic specimen residing down low at the pivot who is a low-volume, yet highly-efficient scorer (a career 8.3 point per game scorer who shoots 72.2% from the floor) and a truly menacing defensive presence with averages of 2.0 blocks per game and boasts a defensive rating of 106 for his career.
What makes his hypothetical fit in Boston perhaps even more enticing is the fact that he sports an incredible offensive rebounding percentage of 16.9% and currently ranks second in the league in offensive rebounds per game with 4.3, thus theoretically allowing a lethal scoring unit consisting of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown to come across even more second-chance opportunities.
Of course, the executive would mention that while a player like Robinson is something that Joe Mazzulla’s squad “would need” should they ever move on from Williams, executing a trade could prove to be rather difficult and, assuming he can continue to stay injury-free, such a transaction should easily be viewed as unnecessary, and it’s easy to see why.
A Healthy Williams is Great for Celtics
When fully healthy, Robert Williams has proven to be a sensational foundational piece for the Celtics.
Just last season, he found himself suiting up for a career-high 61 contests where, in turn, he went on to put-forth career averages of 10.0 points, 9.6 rebounds, and a whopping 2.2 blocks on 73.6% shooting from the floor.
Robert Williams III block party
🚫
His blocks averages ranked second in the entire league last season while he placed sixth in defensive field-goal percentage when within five feet of both the shooter and the rim (50.7), and finished in the top 10 of last year’s Defensive Player of the Year race that, ultimately, was bestowed to his teammate, Marcus Smart.
After missing the first 29 games of this year’s campaign, Timelord has made his return to the hardwood following his recovery from offseason surgery, and, during this time, despite seeing a minutes restriction, he has shown glimpses of his extraordinary contributions shining through, as he’s posting averages of 7.6 points, 7.3 rebounds, and a block on a sensational 83.9% shooting from the field.
Now, with him continuing to shake the rust off of his game, Williams will hopefully bounce back to his 2021-22 form on a consistent basis and, in turn, help shore up any loose ends this Celtics team may have.
Warriors Star Takes Credit for Tatum’s Progression
In the modern-day NBA star power is arguably the most highly coveted aspect for any team vying for a championship, and the title-hopeful Boston Celtics find themselves being guided by legitimate MVP threat, Jayson Tatum.
Though already a three-time All-Star and a two-time All-NBA selection, now in year six the forward has seemingly managed to bring his game to even greater heights, and, in the eyes of Golden State Warriors star Draymond Green, his ascension is a result of Boston’s loss in the 2022 NBA Finals.
“He took it to heart and is playing at an MVP level!” Green wrote, quote-Tweeting Shelbourne’s article.
Through 37 games played this season Jayson Tatum has been magnificent for the Celtics, as he finds himself sporting tremendous per-game averages of 30.7 points, 8.2 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.1 steals, and just shy of a block on 47.1% shooting from the floor and 34.6% shooting from distance.