Celtics big man Aron Baynes will be sidelined for a month with a broken hand, and that opened a big door of opportunity for the rookie Robert Williams.
Rookie Robert Williams, the first round draft pick of the Boston Celtics, has splashed onto Boston’s basketball scene in recent weeks with his stellar ability to block shots, as well as his popular nickname “The Time Lord.”
Williams has been seeing more and more minutes as the schedule rolls along, due in large part to the absence of starting center Al Horford. But after Wednesday’s night’s game against the Phoenix Suns — a disappointing 111-103 loss for Boston — it looks like Celtics fans might be seeing even more of the rookie over the next few weeks.
Big man Aron Baynes, who has mostly served as a backup center and occasional starter for the Celtics, suffered a broken hand during the Suns game, and he’s expected to miss a month of action.
Boston Celtics center Aron Baynes has suffered a broken left hand and will undergo surgery, per league sources on @TheAthleticNBA @WatchStadium. Baynes is expected to return in a month.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) December 20, 2018
With the Baynes injury, the Celtics will lose an excellent rebounder, as well as a guy who can occasionally shoot from the perimeter — a very unusual thing for a player of his size.
On the bright side, however, this just means more opportunity for Williams to get more time on the court and become better adjusted to playing in the NBA. He has already shown plenty of signs that he has a bright future in the league; he’s brought fans at the TD Garden out of their seats a few times this season with his ferocious shot blocks.
He has also proven to be very valuable in the rebounding game as well. Against Phoenix, Williams clocked 24 minutes in the game, grabbing eight rebounds and scoring eight points. He had his best game back on Dec. 10 against the New Orleans Pelicans, when he played 26 minutes off the bench and grabbed 11 boards, as well as contributing seven points.
If he can continue to get those kinds of minutes and keep improving his numbers, he will have made some serious progress by the time Baynes returns from injury.
The Celtics took a gamble by drafting Williams, but so far he has made them look smart for doing so. Now he’ll have an even bigger opportunity to keep proving them right.