The Oddity
Patrick Williams is in a very unique situation. He’s the second-youngest player in the NBA, something that fit right in with the rest of the roster at the start of the season. But the trade deadline changed things.
Earlier in the year, we spoke of how the Bulls were on different timelines.
The likes of LaVine and Young being “ready” to win in the now while Markkanen, White, and (at the time) Wendell Carter Jr. were still developing.
Williams is definitely a part of the latter group. But his skillet is that archetype of what the Bulls need at that position: a two-way player that can do a little bit of everything but doesn’t take the ball out of the hands of the top dogs.
In fact, he does that last part often to a fault. He had just two attempts against Brooklyn, his fewest attempts in any game this season.
The Bulls need more from Williams but is it reasonable to expect it from a 19-year-old that was admittedly raw coming in? Perhaps on a team content to toil away in the doldrums of the Eastern Conference.
This group has shown that isn’t their objective with this. They want to win, now.
That puts Williams under the microscope because, as currently constructed, the Bulls won’t go anywhere if he doesn’t take a big step in his second season.
Otherwise, it might make more sense to dangle him out there as bait to potentially land a good player from a bad team.
As the first pick of the AKME regime, the leash on Williams might be longer than the other young players. But his readiness and that of the team as a whole are obviously very different things.
It cannot be overstated how important this offseason is for Williams and the Bulls.
Oh Captain, My Captain
Billy Donovan is the toughest to judge. Being of the thought that he wasn’t the right man for the job when he was just a rumor, it has to be said that that opinion has changed. Even if just a little.
It’s undeniable the players picked up bad habits over the last few years. So seeing how much better they’ve done under Donovan in certain areas is encouraging.
They had one of the top offenses in the NBA for a good portion of the season. And seeing how well the ball moves (when everyone is locked in) has been a wonderful development as well.
But there have been instances where he’s left players on the floor or bench for too long (which is obviously relative for someone on the outside).
This is one of the questions that followed him from Oklahoma City where his tactical abilities were often the subject of debates. It was a valid criticism with the Thunder team he inherited but perhaps not so much here.
He’s often cited the lack of practice time as a contributing factor to the Bulls’ struggles this season. That’s another valid point but they aren’t alone in that regard nor in that they made major changes to the roster midseason. So what, exactly, can we put on Donovan given the number of things working against the Bulls but while also acknowledging that this isn’t a unique situation?
Similar to Williams, this is a wait-and-see approach.
Donovan might not be the guy to take the Bulls to the promised land. But it’s debatable whether or not that should be the target. It would seem that the front office knows this because acquiring Vuc was never going to make the Bulls championship contenders. But it did shift the culture around the organization.
Likewise, Donovan has begun a culture shift for this team. From his competent (even if sometimes undesirable) game plans to his openness in press conferences. He’s a complete 180-degree difference from his predecessor.
We still have to wait, at least for the roster overhaul to be completed, before we pass judgment on the job Donovan has done.