Final Four 2017: Sleeper impact player from each team

Looking at the X-factors for each of the Final Four teams as they vie for the championship

We’re three weeks and sixty games into the NCAA Tournament. We’re left with just four teams, who will vie for the championship in Phoenix. We’ve got old blood in North Carolina, hitting their 20th Final Four in program history. But it’s mostly new blood, with both Gonzaga and South Carolina in their first Final Fours ever, and Oregon in their first since the 1940s.

You know the stars from these teams — or, at least, you should. Justin Jackson and Joel Berry’s ankles lead the way for North Carolina. Sindarius Thornwell is on fire, averaging almost 26 points per game in the tournament and fresh off SEC Player of the Year honors. Jordan Bell is still blocking Kansas’s layups, and Dillon Brooks and Tyler Dorsey are pulling up from 3 and raining fire. Gonzaga’s Nigel-Williams Goss and Przemek Karnowski have continued their strong play in the tournament, and Zach Collins continues to get NBA hype.

But we’re interested in the bit players here — guys who don’t get the same hype, but will make a key difference for their teams in this Final Four. Let’s run down the sleeper impact players for each of the four teams left.

Gonzaga:  Jonathan Williams

Williams isn’t quite a forgotten man in Gonzaga’s frontcourt rotation, but his star certainly hasn’t shone as bright as Karnowski or Collins. But we got a taste of just how important Williams is to the Bulldogs in Gonzaga’s Elite Eight blowout of Xavier. Tasked with shutting down Xavier’s Trevon Blueitt, the hyper athletic, 6-foot-9 Williams was key in holding him to a 3-14 shooting night, with just 10 points scored. And he feasted on the offensive end against Xavier’s smaller lineup, finishing the night with 19 points scored on 8-12 shooting, with 8 rebounds and 3 blocks. His positional versatility and athleticism on the defensive end make him unique and important in the Gonzaga rotation, even if he’s not asked to carry the load in a traditional sense.

The Missouri transfer will be key for Gonzaga’s national title hopes. In their Final Four matchup, he’ll likely be tasked to match up with either Sindarius Thornwell or PJ Dozier, South Carolina’s main threats on the wing. Because of their length, Williams is likely the best matchup for either – the rest of Gonzaga’s wing defenders are all 6-foot-4 or less. How well he manages this job when asked will play a big part in whether the Bulldogs advance to the title game. And once he gets there, both Oregon and North Carolina have scoring wings that Williams is uniquely qualified to guard on the defensive end. His ability to clean the boards and finish inside on the offensive end is also important for Gonzaga, and he’s even shown the ability to step out and hit some shots.