When the Chicago Bulls drafted Patrick Williams with the fourth overall pick of the 2020 NBA Draft, expectations were high for the 6'7 forward coming out of Florida State. Williams was a versatile defender who, if things broke out accordingly in his development, had a chance of developing into a dangerous scoring threat on the wing. After all, he had flashed a dangerous pull-up midrange jumper, which could end up being such a lethal go-to weapon for the Bulls forward.
However, Williams has yet to put it together for the Bulls, and entering Year 4, plenty of concerns remain surrounding his true impact for the team and how well he can contribute to winning in more of a support role alongside the Bulls' star trio of Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan, and Nikola Vucevic. On Tuesday night, one such concern was Williams' ability to contribute on the glass, which led to an early benching from head coach Billy Donovan.
Donovan then explained after the game that he had talked to Patrick Williams before the Bulls' preseason game against the Toronto Raptors about being more aggressive on the boards, only for him to witness something different after the game had already tipped off.
“We had talked about it and I just didn’t like the way we came out. … We can’t run away from physicality,” the Bulls HC said, per Julia Poe of the Chicago Tribune.
To Patrick Williams' credit, he acknowledged that he may have been a bit lacking on his efforts on the boards, especially when compared to the efforts shown by his Bulls teammates such as Nikola Vucevic, Andre Drummond, and even Ayo Dosunmu. He then said that it's all about focusing more of his mentality towards improving his workrate on the glass — he averaged just 4.0 boards a night last season, his worst average in a single season since entering the league.
“I think [rebounding well] is definitely something I can do. I don't think it's a secret that I can rebound the ball. It's just more so going back and getting it. Just having the mindset of going in,” Williams said.
Patrick Williams on what it will take for him to make an impact on the boards: “It’s just a mindset.”
Billy Donovan pulled Pat three minutes into the game because he wasn’t crashing the offensive boards enough. He finished with only three rebounds. pic.twitter.com/4v42FutMZO
— Julia Poe (@byjuliapoe) October 18, 2023
For Patrick Williams to cement his status as the Bulls' starting power forward, he'll have to follow through on his words, as he definitely has the talent to do so.
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