#23 Derrick Williams | F
Stats

Hometown: La Mirada, CA

Height: 6'8"

Weight: 235

Position: Small Forward/Power Forward

Team: Arizona

Class: Sophomore
Strengths

Right-handed… One of the biggest risers in this year's class, there are few things not to like about the 6'7" combo forward. Scouts love his productivity in college, especially this year; he is averaging 19 points, 8 rebounds per game and chipping in with nearly one block and one steal a game. But it's his versatility, his ability to play both inside and out that has him standing out. For an undersized Arizona team, Williams is asked to play the power forward spot. He can step outside and has a dramatically improved face-up game, as evidenced by his extremely high conversion rate from 3-point range. Williams has made well over 60-percent of his attempts from deep… Not only does Williams look more athletic, but he is more confident shooting the ball from inside 23-feet and has worked on putting the ball on the floor and driving to the rim to score the basketball… Williams thrives in transition which is when the scouts love to watch him play. He offers great quickness and leaping ability for his size, but also tremendous body control around the rim. He can stop and shoot the short jumper or finish in acrobatic ways… Williams' post play is developed at the moment, but still rather raw. He spends most of his team's offensive possessions in the paint, using above-average footwork and excellent quickness to score with a soft touch. He gets to the free-throw line at a high rate- nearly 9 times a game, converting around 75% of those attempts… Williams has shown pretty good offensive awareness, looking for open areas in the defense and slipping into that space… As for Williams' hope as a perimeter player, he has an excellent 1st step. He has been very good at putting the ball on the floor and driving to the rim, finishing with contact or getting to the foul line…
Weaknesses

As a "tweener", Williams is a hybrid forward that limits his NBA stock a bit. He's undersized to play the 4 and isn't quite ready to play the 3 consistently. He has some high turnover games, mostly from Williams trying to force the issue and create when the offense is stalled, whether with his own dribble or forcing passes- those are things that will likely come in time for this sophomore…. Williams will struggle to defend taller, stronger players in the post at the next level and also lacks great lateral quickness to defend perimeter players.
The Scouting Report: