Southeast Division (good) breakout candidate: Mark Williams (CHA)
Honorable Mentions: Nikola Jovic, AJ Griffin, Johnny Davis
Back to the theme of success toward the end of last season, Williams earned the starting center job in Charlotte in mid-February. In 14 games following the All-Star Break, Williams averaged 11.9 points, 10.1 rebounds, and 0.8 blocks per game on a 65.3 TS% (64.6/0.0/61.8 splits). This starting center job is guaranteed to be his.
Williams is as much of a traditional center as you can find, and I don’t mean this in a bad way; he’s very good at what he does. Offensively, he’s a roll & cut big. 78% of his shots came at the rim, and he converted those at a respectable 70% clip. To maximize himself in this role, getting his rim FG% closer to around 75% would be ideal. Williams also provides value as an offensive rebounder, as he pulled down about three per game in that 14-game stretch.
He is also a very good defensive rebounder. His size, 7 feet tall and a shade over 240 pounds, helps with this ability, and that also helps him as a rim protector. He’s able to impact shots because of the size and reach that he has with his 7-foot-7 wingspan and 9-foot-9 standing reach. He isn’t a great rim protector yet, but he is on the pathway to being there.
That starting center job is undoubtedly his, and he should average a double-double this coming season. I would guess that we see numbers just slightly higher than his post-All-Star-Break run, something around 13 or 14 points and 10 or 11 rebounds with hopefully over 1 block per. His efficiency is already amazing, but if he can improve that poor free throw a little and get that rim FG% up, his TS% being at 69% would be just incredible for the Hornets, who are likely aiming to make the Play-In Tournament this year. With such a quality starting center like Williams, it’s possible.