|
|
|
|
Shaquille
O'Neal: "When you are 60, hang out with 60-year-olds, not 20-year-olds.
That is all I got to say about Jerry Buss."
|
|
|
|
HoopsHype.com Articles A
point to prove
It might have appeared that Shammond Williams became a Celtic largely as an afterthought. The sidebar to the major offseason swap of Vin Baker for Kenny Anderson, Williams arrived in Boston as an unknown commodity with plenty of upside and few expectations. But as the season begins this Wednesday, his role with the club is already much better defined than that of Baker's, and Williams is poised for a coming out party in his fifth NBA season. Buried behind Gary Payton on the depth chart in Seattle, Williams knew he wasn't going to get many opportunities to prove himself, and like Baker, he yearned for a fresh start. Williams probably couldn't find a better place to get his second chance to make a first impression, and better yet, the Celtics' brass seems to believe that he's up for the challenge. "It's great being someplace where they want you to excel," said Williams, who was picked 34th overall in the 1998 NBA Draft by Chicago. He was dealt to Atlanta that June but played just four minutes in two games for the Hawks before being waived in February of 1999. He signed the following season with the Sonics as a free agent. After showing signs of his potential in his first two seasons as Payton's backup, Williams garnered interest around the league and was pursued as a restricted free agent before the 2001 season by the Celtics, among other teams. But with the luxury tax talk already heating up, cap-strapped teams couldn't ante up the $4.5 million it would have cost them to ink Williams without Seattle being able to match. So he signed a three-year pact with the Sonics instead. Besides his one-time foot-high Afro and the ever-present headband, the file on Williams isn't very detailed. He isn't regarded as a classic point guard, and despite his much improved ballhandling skills, he still has a lot to learn about quarterbacking an offense and running a fast break. He is known for his shooting skills, especially from downtown, but his size (or lack thereof) has NBA personnel men convinced that he should play the point. Then again, the whispers that he's a ball hog aren't going to help that case. And despite initially getting opportunities to prove himself to Sonics coach Nate McMillan, Williams fell behind rookie Earl Watson on the point guard depth chart in the second half of last season, making him expendable. "The relationship in Seattle had been burned out. And now with Vin, he and I are in a situation where we can come in and help this team compete at the next level. That's what we're trying to do," said Williams. Still, for the Celtics and their situation, Williams may not have to provide the same type of playmaking abilities that your average point guard is expected to, because coach Jim O'Brien is confident in the creative talents of Paul Pierce and Antoine Walker. And while Walker has always been a willing, able and talented passer, Pierce seems to have caught the dishing disease this preseason. Rather than taking three guys in the paint at once, Pierce has often opted to kick it out to open shooters, and the Celtics offense, predicated on playing as many perimeter shooters as the law will allow, is benefiting. Williams will be one of those beneficiaries. While some observers are suggesting that Walker or Pierce could end up leading the team in assists because of the uncertainty at the one spot, Pierce feels that his point guards can get the job done. "I'm really concentrating on finding open guys and making the extra pass. That makes it easier for the offense," said Pierce. "But we've got guards who can get it done too." The job description largely entails getting the ball over halfcourt and then getting it to Walker or Pierce. Competing with Tony Delk and rookie JR Bremer for playing time, Williams is getting a genuine shot at winning that starting point guard job. Delk, the current starter, is also more known as a scorer than a playmaker, and while Bremer is regarded as a more natural point guard, his minutes have slipped as the preseason wrapped up and looks to be a spare part at this stage. Eventually, the starting job should be Williams' to win. And even if he doesn't end up starting games, it's more telling when you're on the floor to finish them. With that in mind, if there's anything he really needs to pick up, it's the Celtics defensive schemes. Delk has a decided advantage in that department to date. Still, the Celtics defensive improvements have been more about effort than ability. "He's another young guy who comes in here with a lot of vigor. He can break guys down with the dribble, get into the paint, and shoot the three," said teammate Eric Williams. "The only thing now is to get him into our system on the defensive end, and then running our offense smoothly. He's starting to make the transition now. The more he gets out there, the smoother he's gonna be." That won't happen overnight. But the easy part for Williams should be that to grow into his role as the Celtics point guard, he's going to have to become accustomed to thinking shoot first thanks to the team's perimeter-based attack. Based on his history in Seattle, that shouldn't be a problem. While at first he seemed tentative to take open shots in the first few exhibition games, Williams is now more comfortable in pulling the trigger. "I was just taking advantage of the situation. I was trying to get a feel for the team with every pass. I'm just trying to help my teammates, and sometimes just because there's a good shot for you, there might be a better shot for someone else. The more games you play, the more you get familiarized with everybody," said Williams. Fitting in with his new team was certainly a part of it, but the item on his resume that appeals to the Celtics is his outside shooting prowess. Williams has a textbook jumper, the type that always looks like it's going in. And the Celtics want him to take it more often than not. "I have the green light to take shots, but I'm not going to take crazy shots," said Williams, a 39% career three-point shooter. "The thing about it is, a lot of people call me an outside shooter, but I can score inside and get to the bucket. I'm a basketball player." Finally, Williams is going to get to prove just how good a basketball player he can be. Peter F. Stringer has covered the Boston Celtics and the NBA since 1996 and is a regular contributor to HoopsHype.comTell us what you think about this article. E-mail us at HoopsHype@HoopsHype.com _____________________ |
||||||||||||||||||||||
