Franchise cornerstones for the Chicago Bulls No. 2: Patrick Williams
If there was one thing that Karnisovas and the Bulls should not do at the trade deadline, it is trade the rookie forward and former Florida State Seminole Patrick Williams. The Bulls are seeing more and more fruits of their labor in taking a risk on and developing the 19-year-old North Carolina native Williams as his rookie campaign moves along.
Williams’ counting stats and shooting percentages look good so far this season, but the advanced metrics are still lagging a bit behind. He’s averaged around 10 points per game, five rebounds, one assist, one steal, and one block. And Williams shot a solid 46.2 percent from the field, 38.4 percent from beyond the arc, and 78.1 percent from the free-throw line.
But Williams’ player efficiency rating is still sitting at a subpar 9.9, along with his box plus/minus rating at -3.7 and win shares per 48 minutes at .050. It is going to take some time for the game of Williams to round out on both ends of the floor.
Donovan and the new front office regime have to be very encouraged about what they’ve seen from Williams so far, though. He often draws the toughest matchup of any Bulls starter, taking on opposition such as superstar forward Kawhi Leonard, LeBron James, and Giannis Antetokounmpo at different points of the season.
Watch out for what Williams can do for the Bulls down the stretch as his game only continues to improve of late. He’s turning the ball over less, shooting better from beyond the arc, and getting more key blocks in the month of March than he did in any prior month of the season.