Chicago Bulls Triple Threat: Three takeaways from Lakers game
Patrick Williams on LeBron James, and it wasn’t bad
Patrick Williams didn’t start a game at Florida State University. His senior season of high school was two years ago. He was the youngest American born selected in the 2020 draft. In Illinois, he’d still be on a Graduated Drivers License.
In the last 10 games, he’s guarded Giannis Antetokounmpo and LeBron James. And it hasn’t been half bad.
Williams drew the primary matchup on James from the jump, and he took that challenge in stride. Williams didn’t light up the box score in a traditional matter, as he only had six points, eight boards and no assists. But, he did have four steals.
Most importantly, he made life hard on James. James made an obscene amount of turnaround fadeaways from the mid post, but it felt like Williams was keeping James from getting in the lane at will.
Don’t just take my word for it. Take renown basketball mind Stephen Noh’s:
LeBron got Patrick Williams a few times, but Williams was pretty good in the 4th quarter when things got close. Held LeBron to 2-of-9 shooting, 1 assist, 1 turnover, 6 points.
— Steph Noh (@StephNoh) January 9, 2021
Can't remember a 19 year old ever guarding LeBron like this. https://t.co/7DGaEAaapt pic.twitter.com/8BZX32PSco
If that doesn’t turn over your engine, how about praise from James himself:
"“I think he is going to be an exceptional talent. [He has] long arms. He has Kawhi-type of hands that I noticed out on the floor so I knew I couldn’t play with the ball much. You can tell he is just laser-sharp on just trying to get better and better. … He just stayed sharp on the gameplan and I think he is going to continue to get better and better. He has a great in-between game but if you notice his hands, like I said, he has Kawhi-type of hands that is going to benefit him a lot throughout the course of his career. I think Chicago has a good one.”–Via RookieWire.com"
Williams looks more comfortable than I would’ve thought. In terms of poise, he has it all. Williams to me is like a black hole — but not in THAT way. Time seems to dilate and slow down whenever he has the ball. He doesn’t rush, he just gets to his spots.
Williams is a rookie. There’s been times where he hasn’t taken a shot that he should, he’s good for at least one travel a game, and he’s playing in a very limited role offensively. However, Billy Donovan trusts Williams enough to put him on league MVPs night in and night out, which is a ringing endorsement for his rookie in both the short and long term