Getty Patrick Williams dunks the basketball during a May 16 game against the Milwaukee Bucks.
Nothing about the Chicago Bulls‘ season was orthodox, between an extended absence from Zach LaVine, and their mid-season trade for an All-Star in Nikola Vucevic.
But in a year where the team fell short of the playoffs for the fourth-straight season, rookie Patrick Williams’ play has served as the ultimate consolation prize for fans.
Last year’s fourth overall pick from the finished his rookie season averaging 9.2 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 1.4 assists per game on an efficient 48/39/73 shooting split.
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Williams Dubbed Chicago’s Most ‘Encouraging’ Player
In his final edition of power rankings for the 2020-2021 seasons, Zach Harper of The Athletic added in acknowledgements of each NBA team’s encouraging player moving forward.
For the Chicago Bulls, it wasn’t either of the team’s two All-Stars or proclaimed team-MVP Thaddeus Young.
Harper likes rookie Patrick Williams as the team’s brightest spot moving forward:
What a fantastic pick this was at No. 4 for the Chicago Bulls. Williams didn’t have the monster games or the jaw-dropping stats. But every Bulls game you watched this season, you could see Williams putting it together more and more. His instincts on both ends of the floor are high level. His skill set is developing constantly, and despite other rookies having better seasons, I’m not sure the Bulls would think about changing anything with that fourth pick. This was the right guy for building the organization.
There have been so many conversations had about which All-Star the Bulls’ could target next to form a ‘Big 3’ with LaVine and Vucevic. But who’s to say it can’t be Williams?
Even if not, to Harper’s point, there’s little doubt about whether or not Chicago has any regrets over last year’s draft.
Bulls Would Pick Williams Again if Given the Chance
In addition to Harper’s power rankings piece, Patrick Williams saw some praise via Jonathan Wasserman’s latest.
For Bleacher Report, the draft analyst did a redraft of last year’s class, now that the season is over.
And to the surprise of none, Williams was selected once again, to Chicago, at fourth overall:
There were more productive rookies than Patrick Williams, but the Chicago Bulls should still feel confident in their 2020 pick. There isn’t another obvious prospect they should have taken.
Wasserman cited the 19-year old’s impressive demeanor on defense, as well as a seemingly consistent shot from the three-point line as reasons for optimism moving forward:
At 19 years old, Williams held his own at both ends of the floor. He shot better than expected from three (39.1 percent), flashed untapped playmaking potential with live-dribble passing and showed signs of exciting defensive upside with his physical tools and range.
Williams was tasked all-season long with guarding top perimeter players like LeBron James, Kawhi Leonard, and Giannis Antetokounmpo to name a few. He held his own and has oftentimes looked like the team’s best defender.
Offensively he was more limited until as of recent. With LaVine out, his field-goal attempts nightly actually dipped, from 7.6 per game to 6.8, per Basketball Reference.
Both head coach Billy Donovan and teammates have solicited for Williams’ to be more aggressive on offense.
And when he has, it becomes increasingly apparent as to why analysts and the team alike are so optimistic about his future in this league.
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