SUBJECT: P. WILLIAMS
PATRICK WILLIAMS
Focus: scoring aggression/production, “intangibles,” defense
GAME 1 OF 3
1/31 V. LAC • L, 108-103
11 points, 6 boards
Despite an early, double-digit advantage, the Chicago Bulls let (yet) another game slip away. Primarily matched up with Kawhi Leonard, Williams was engaged v. one of his favorite players and produced a pretty solid night, regardless of what the numbers say.
Sure, he only took 8 shots but they all came within the flow of the offense - late in the first quarter, Pat burst down an open lane (all w/ his left land) for a highlight finish. While Kawhi made a point to go at Pat (ex. aggressively sought b2b jumpers in the second that fell through the net), he didn’t look too outmatched, especially down the stretch.
Though the Bulls made mistakes (as a whole) in the 4th, Williams played strong defense on both Kawhi & Paul George.
GAME 2 OF 3
2/2 @ CHA • W, 114-98
6 points, 4 boards, 2 dimes
In a much more favorable meeting v. the Hornets a couple of nights later, Chicago picked up a needed W.
In 27 minutes, Pat was fairly quiet on the offensive end: hit only two field goals (both triples) and went 2/8 overall. His defense on both Gordon Hayward & PJ Washington, however, proved key: Hayward went 2/10 & Washington made only 3 of 15 shots.
His effect on winning remained noticeable…though the box score won’t show it.
Williams tweaked his ankle late in the 4th, leaving him questionable to play against Portland later in the week.
GAME 3 OF 3
2/4 v. POR • W, 129-121
6 points, 7 boards
Pat fought through a sore ankle to play 31 minutes v. Portland. Once again, his shot was off (3/9 FGM, scored just 6 points) but he helped limit Jerami Grant to a poor shooting performance of his own (13 points on 5/13).
With the rest of the starting five combining for 99! points, Williams didn’t really need to showcase a heightened level of aggression that would significantly influence the result.
TRACKING GOALS
Avg. 13+ points over 3 games -- Nope. Avg. 7.6 ppg
Avg. 5+ rebounds over 3 games -- Yep! Avg. 5.3 boards
Avg. 10+ FGA over 3 games -- Nope. Avg. 8.3 FGA
10+ total assists over 3 games -- Nope. Just 2! total assists
Team Success: at least 2 victories -- Yep! Bulls went 2-1
Goals Completed: 2/5
TAKEAWAY
Overall, P-Will had a few positive moments during this tracking… period. He found some ways to contribute to winning without scoring at a consistent rate & displayed his trademark defensive versatility in various matchups throughout.
That said, his offensive impact from Game 1-3 absolutely fell and while he didn’t necessarily NEED to take more shots with his teammates playing well, it’s a glaring concern in games where that isn’t the case.
Neither the Bulls nor Williams can afford to pick & choose when he should put his best foot forward as a scorer: he needs to provide a reliable, double-digit effort no matter the situation. There are too many flashes of accurate shooting, off-the-dribble scoring & hard drives to the rim for him to fall into a passive mode.
Consistency and confidence are most important for Pat: when he lets the game come to him, it usually works in his favor. Chicago needs his best version to show up as the season winds down - if not, a play-in berth is only a remote possibility at this point.
Tracking Complete.
(Baro.)