Derrick Williams‘ performance in the preseason gave New York Knicks fans unrealistic expectations about what he could give the team this season. He’s not a starter, and in reality he’s a role player who is going to have his ups and downs. What he has shown is that at his best he’s capable of being an electric scorer and an important contributor off the bench.
Williams continued his impressive month of January by logging 36 minutes, scoring 19 points, and grabbing 10 rebounds in Tuesday night’s hard-fought overtime loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder. His impressive monthly averages now sit at 12.8 PPG, 6.2 RPG, while shooting over 45 percent from the field. After going through a terrible November slump when his role in the rotation was being questioned, Williams has bounced back in a huge way.
After scoring in double digits just seven times in November and December combined, Williams has hit that benchmark eight times this month alone. His increased playing time due to Carmelo Anthony’s recent injury issues has opened the window into how effective he can be when given the opportunity. His season averages of 9.4 PPG and 3.7 RPG have shot up in the Knicks’ last seven games as his minutes have increased from 17.2 to 28.6, leading to him scoring 16.6 points and grabbing 7.1 rebounds in that span.
The Knicks don’t have many aggressive players on offense who can create their own shot, but Williams is definitely one. He attacks the rim with reckless abandon with 4.0 points in the paint per game. He gets out in transition with 1.9 points and 52 percent shooting on transition plays — better than any other player the Knicks have. Williams is a high-energy player who scores off of turnovers and second-chance points, making plays that get the crowd into the game and swing the momentum back to his team’s side.
Williams’ case for more playing time is supported by his elite per 36 statistics. He’s scoring 19.7 PPG and grabbing 7.8 RPG according to Basketball-Reference.com. Not everything with Williams is perfect of course, as he’s taking two 3-point shots per game and is only making 24 percent of his long-distance attempts. Like most players, he tends to get three-happy, but he’s very streaky and if he were to cut down on those shots his effectiveness would improve.
The acquisition of Derrick Williams was a small one in the grand scheme of the Knicks’ master plan, but he could end up being an important asset.
