Robert Williams Continues To Make His Case For An Expanded Role
By Matthew Geagan, CBS Boston
BOSTON (CBS) -- Robert Williams is really giving new meaning to his "Timelord" nickname. The Celtics center still isn't seeing a ton of playing time, but the big man is certainly making the most of his limited minutes on the floor.
With that, Williams is making the case that Brad Stevens should up his playing time going forward. Williams is finally showing that he can contribute and hold his own with increased responsibilities on the floor, and the cries for more Timelord are just going to increase as his production continues to rise.
Williams had a historic effort in his 19 minutes of action during Boston's blowout win over the Houston Rockets on Sunday night, scoring 16 points and pulling down 13 rebounds in a 134-107 victory. Williams is just the 10th player in NBA history to put up such a stat line in fewer than 20 minutes.
And if that isn't good enough for you, Williams was a perfect 7-for-7 from the floor Sunday night, with all of his hoops either dunks or easy put-ins from a few inches away. It's the product of his ability to dominate the paint, and his teammates' tendency to just loft it up to him whenever he's around the hoop. Just about everyone trusts that Williams is going to put the ball through the iron when he's around the basket.
That perfect shooting night made Williams just the second Celtics player -- ever -- to put up at least 16 points and 13 rebounds while shooting 100 percent. The last Boston player to accomplish such a feat was Ed Pinckney, who was also 7-for-7 when he scored 19 points and corralled 14 rebounds back on March 29, 1991 in a win over Cleveland.
Williams has had a knack for putting up big numbers in his brief appearances this season, and we've seen him do it quite often most recently. It started back on Jan. 4 with an 11-point, 15-rebound showing in less than 20 minutes against the Raptors, and continued three weeks ago with a 13-rebound performance in 21 minutes against the Pelicans. Williams also scored 14 and pulled down 11 rebounds in 22 minutes in a win over the Pacers ahead of the All-Star break.
Williams has played in 14 straight games and logged 14 minutes or more in 12 of those contests, averaging 8.6 points, 6.8 rebounds and 2.3 blocks per game over that span. Injuries and consistency have been Williams' biggest detractors during his young career, but it seems both are in his rear-view mirror, and he's being rewarded for making an impact whenever he's on the floor.
"I want as many minutes as I can get," Williams said Sunday night. "My minutes ramping up is just a dream come true. I just got to lock in more."
Part of the problem is Boston's logjam at center, with Daniel Theis and Tristan Thompson both ahead of Williams on the depth chart. But the more and more he contributes, the more Williams will force Stevens' hand to award him with even more playing time. Boston has always taken a cautious approach with the 23-year-old, but there really isn't any other option going forward. Good things seem to happen when Williams is on the floor, and the Celtics need plenty of good things to happen during the second half of the season.
"I just think we can make it so that he can play more and more and more as the season goes on," Stevens said after Sunday's win. "The density of the games and his history, especially last year, we're just being conservative. But he's getting a lot better and you can see that. He's able to play a little bit longer stints than he has in the past because he plays really hard when he's out there."
Thompson has improved vastly from his early season struggles and Theis continues to do all the little things that make him an integral part of the Celtics. But Williams is making the kind of impact that the Celtics need out of their biggest player on the floor, and in due time, Boston may have no choice but to have him lead the way in the frontcourt.
The world wants more Timelord on a nightly basis. It's time to give everyone what they want.
