Tim Nwachukwu/Getty Images
Boston Celtics center Robert Williams
III has reportedly “drawn interest” ahead of the 2022 NBA trade
deadline on Feb. 10.
Michael Scotto of HoopsHype reported
Wednesday that rival executives don’t expect the Celtics to move Williams
despite the interest because they view him as “part of the core” alongside Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown.
Williams is putting together a strong
2021-22 season despite a limited offensive role (5.9 field-goal
attempts per game). He’s averaged 9.9 points, 9.4 rebounds, 2.1
blocks and 1.9 assists while shooting 73.8 percent from the field.
The 6’9″, 237-pound Texas A&M product
would have likely been viewed as an emerging All-Star in an earlier
era, but his peak value is less certain in a modern game that’s
moved toward stretch bigs. He’s an old-school post player who hasn’t
made a three in his career.
The 24-year-old has still made a positive impact at
both ends of the floor while ranking tied for 77th among all NBA
players in FiveThirtyEight’s WAR metric.
Given the league’s 30 teams, that
ranking would agree with the assessment rival executives gave Scotto
that he can be a core player behind an offensively gifted tandem like
Tatum and Brown.
In December, Williams credited first-year Celtics
head coach Ime Udoka for putting faith in him after he posted his
first career triple-double in a win over the Phoenix Suns, who own
the NBA’s best record.
“He believes in me a lot,”
Williams told reporters. “I’m thankful for the way he pushes me
every day.”
Boston has struggled to string together
wins for most of the season, which is why it continues to hover
around .500 (25-24) and there’s been talk of potentially shaking up
the core before the deadline.
The Celtics have shown signs of life
lately by winning seven of their past 10 games, however, and Shams
Charania of The Athletic reported earlier in January the front office
had “no interest” in splitting up the Tatum-Brown duo.
Williams would be next on the list in
terms of players who could command a significant return, but he’s
under contract through the 2025-26 season as part of a team-friendly four-year, $48 million deal, so there’s no pressure to move him.
So, despite all the buzz around the
Celtics in recent weeks, it sounds like they won’t be involved in any
blockbusters leading up to the deadline.
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