R-Dub: Time Lord, Tantalizing Sleeper, or Just a Late Flier?

Cesar Crespo

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If the team is fully healthy, there isn't really any time for him. Even if he has earned it. Whose minutes does he take? Semi's? Semi has earned minutes too. Theis? Same.
 

amarshal2

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I think he’s an interesting player to build not just for the long-term future but for the playoffs. Just like Semi last year on Simmons, he has unique skills that could potentially be used to dramatically slow down a superstar for 20 mins a game. Tonight he looked good enough vs AD that he can swing the overall matchup when he’s on the floor. Obviously Embiid could be interesting but we already know man bun is in his head.

The guy I really want to see what he looks like guarding is Giannis. If you prevent Giannis from shooting within 3 feet you destroy 99% of his value. (Eyeballing his shooting stats he’s shooting over .800 within 3ft and somewhere in the range of ~.300 beyond 3 ft.) If Time Lord can do that he’d have mega value this year.
 

lovegtm

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Geez. I trade him for a top 5 pick without any single hesitation
Sorry, my wording was unclear; I didn't mean that he'd go top 5. I meant that I'd trade him for a top 5 pick, wouldn't trade him for a #10, and would have to think about everything between 6 and 9.

edit: Which makes sense, when you look at #6-10 in this year's (quite strong) draft. You probably take Bamba over him because of the shooting, but I'm not sure, in hindsight, that I'd take Carter, Sexton, Knox, or Bridges over Williams.

If tape of his game last night existed in June, we all would have been drooling over him going into the draft.
 

Red Averages

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He's also a fantastic fit for what they need, before we even get into the talent piece of things.

Last night was very impressive.

Also just shows how ridiculous AD is that he can put up 40 points and we have two pages salivating about the defense against him.
 

lovegtm

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Also just shows how ridiculous AD is that he can put up 40 points and we have two pages salivating about the defense against him.
To be fair, his stats when guarded by Williams were awful, and it's weird to me that no one is distinguishing between Williams and Theis (who was owned by AD).
 

NoXInNixon

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This wasn't just one game. He's looked great in games before today. And he reportedly looks great in practices.
 

DJnVa

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On the first one, AD does a little fake and Timelord doesn't even move.
 

lovegtm

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This wasn't just one game. He's looked great in games before today. And he reportedly looks great in practices.
It was his first game in non-garbage time, and he more than held his own 1-on-1 against one of the best players in the league, so it definitely counts for more. At the same time, you're right that it adds a lot of weight to those glowing practice reports.

The other reason people are so hyped is that everything he did looked repeatable. He played amazing D and didn't gum things up on offense. This isn't like a random guard going off for 30 with a hot night from 3, or Jabari Bird racking up tons of backdoor cuts against bad teams.
 

cecil c

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During the after game analysis, Kevin McHale said that Danny Ainge had taken Williams aside and already given the 'it's a privilege to don the uniform'. Plus he's wearing Danny's old number. Hope 'Time Lord' keeps some good minders about him.
 

BigSoxFan

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The number of people who are capable of blocking an AD fade away like he did in the 2nd clip has to be very small. Now I want to see him on the Freak and Durant.
 

Was (Not Wasdin)

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It's not just the blocks. On the next trip down after the first block, AD had to alter his shot to avoid another block.

My favorite aspect of this-no over doing it, no playing to the crowd. Block the shot, get the ball into the offense and get down the other end. All business.
 

lovegtm

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It's not just the blocks. On the next trip down after the first block, AD had to alter his shot to avoid another block.

My favorite aspect of this-no over doing it, no playing to the crowd. Block the shot, get the ball into the offense and get down the other end. All business.
Yup, he severely altered multiple jumpshots, most of them with a ton of separation between him and Davis.
 

lovegtm

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IT's obvious desire to still be part of the Celtics is funny, cute, and heartbreaking all at the same time.
 

benhogan

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To be fair, his stats when guarded by Williams were awful, and it's weird to me that no one is distinguishing between Williams and Theis (who was owned by AD).
GTM, I think you did a good job highlighting the difference between TimeLord and Theis guarding AD in the other thread(Celtics 18-19).

TL vs AD: 15pts 7-17 w/2 blocks. AD's shot arc, against TL, was definitely altered after the initial block.

Theis is a decent defensive player but Williams appears to be even better. TL's footwork looks good enough to cover bigs and big wings on the perimeter and alter shots from 3pt distance. I was also somewhat impressed with Williams on offense, he seems fine with the ball in his hands at the top looking for cutters, the game didn't speed up on him.

Hopefully, Brad is willing to experiment w/Williams and give him some 1st half minutes. The Celtics can get away with more rest for Horford's knee while they play the easier part of the schedule. Over the next month split up the Center(5) time between Baynes/Theis/Williams, and let's see how the team fares. If they flourish, a healthy Al is more than capable of playing minutes as a big wing (4).
 

lovegtm

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Theis is a decent defensive player but Williams appears to be even better. TL's footwork looks good enough to cover bigs and big wings on the perimeter and alter shots from 3pt distance. I was also somewhat impressed with Williams on offense, he seems fine with the ball in his hands at the top looking for cutters, the game didn't speed up on him.
TL's ability to alter jumpshots of anyone, guards included, really stood out in his college tape. I was shocked last night at how much that ability held up against an NBA superstar. It's a really, really special talent, and potentially can set TL apart even from other elite rim protectors like Gobert.

I'm sure Brad was excited too, so I imagine we'll start to see Williams in more lineups. It might turn out to be critical for this year's championship equity, particularly against Giannis.
 

Eddie Jurak

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Yes. We’ve seen it from him since preseason, too. He gets your typical big man type blocks, but then he also sometimes gets up and blocks a floater without goaltending, or blocks a shot from a guard on the perimeter.

He also had a nice entry pass to Jaylen, who should have had a layup out of it.
 

ugmo33

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I agree with everybody that the 2 blocks on AD were impressive, as was his block on a 3-pointer in G-league someone posted upthread. His length and athleticism are incredible. But was anyone else a little concerned by the wild swipes he seems to take at every shot? Like he's trying to block absolutely everything. It might be a quibble but it seems like it would lead to a lot of and-1's
 

lovegtm

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I agree with everybody that the 2 blocks on AD were impressive, as was his block on a 3-pointer in G-league someone posted upthread. His length and athleticism are incredible. But was anyone else a little concerned by the wild swipes he seems to take at every shot? Like he's trying to block absolutely everything. It might be a quibble but it seems like it would lead to a lot of and-1's
Meh...he actually did a great job on AD of being the 2nd jumper every time, which made the fact that he got those blocks even more impressive.
 

chilidawg

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But was anyone else a little concerned by the wild swipes he seems to take at every shot? Like he's trying to block absolutely everything. It might be a quibble but it seems like it would lead to a lot of and-1's
I noticed it, but it's not really concerning considering his inexperience. With a little more time he'll get a little more discerning. Must be a little disconcerting to the offense though to have a guy back there swatting at everything that comes down the lane.
 

Imbricus

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Did anyone notice that only one Celtic played more than 25 minutes last night and didn't have a single turnover?

Williams.
 

sezwho

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I noticed it, but it's not really concerning considering his inexperience. With a little more time he'll get a little more discerning. Must be a little disconcerting to the offense though to have a guy back there swatting at everything that comes down the lane.
I agree he’ll become more discerning but think there is a chance the league adjusts as well. Block AD a couple times one on one and you aren’t under the radar anymore.
 

slamminsammya

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I agree he’ll become more discerning but think there is a chance the league adjusts as well. Block AD a couple times one on one and you aren’t under the radar anymore.
And that's a good thing. A good shot blockers impact is like jazz - its as much about the shots that arent taken as it is about the ones he blocks.
 

djbayko

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Yeah, it's not exactly a bad problem. If he was biting on up fakes and getting taken to school or called for fouls, it would be a lot more concerning. Let the other team know that any shot near the key is at risk.

His athleticism is just beautiful to watch. Someone mentioned in one of these threads that watching Zion is almost like watching a cartoon - superhuman movement. It's the same way with Time Lord on dunks and D.
 

DannyDarwinism

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Encouraging to see him getting meaningful PT, even given the minutes crunch. It’s a great environment for a young kid with so much to learn. There’s some low-hanging fruit for him to work on - conditioning and screen setting come immediately to mind-that’ll help him earn more minutes, but it’s good to see him involved. He has some strengths that just can’t be taught.
 

Imbricus

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The Time Lord nickname explained, for anyone who missed it, from one of the guys at Weird Celtics Twitter:
"So (we) started joking that he wasn't late, he was operating on a different timeline concurrent to the one we are in, as evidenced by the fact that I knew he was a Celtic two years before he was a Celtic. And we would do it with people taking themselves really seriously and they'd get very mad at us for thinking they were too uptight. So from there he became a T I M E L O R D, like the characters in Doctor Who whose time travel can tie together terrible holes in the plot of a shoddy script.

"Basically, Timelord boiled down to the prediction of drafting him in 2017 and also defending him against uptight people who were earnestly acting like they've never been late to work in their lives," Hebert said. "Weird Celtics Twitter is a bizarre place, but we genuinely love the characters and personalities and people on the team, and we are online so much that we have to do absurd things to show people how stupid it is to say a mega-athlete with a savant-like feel for timing, blocks and passing is a bust because they missed a flight. We all love Robert and are pulling for him as a pro and as a person and this is our bizarre way of going about it."
 

lovegtm

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The question is, should it be lovegtm who's credited with it, back on Oct 2nd? Did he get it from Weird Celtics Twitter? Or are both just big Doctor Who fans?
Haha, as much as I would give my left nut to be the creator of one of the best nicknames I've ever heard, I got it from Weird Celtics Twitter, of which I am an avid fan. As soon as I heard it, I knew it was perfect, and was just worried it wouldn't ring as true to the ears of others.

The HebertOfRiffs origin story sounds about right.
 

bankshot1

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While it will be some time until we emerge from the land of SSS re TL, he seems to have the ability to not only block shots but control the block, keep it in play and give the Celts a 50/50 shot at transition offense as opposed to a ball sent 4 rows deep, side-out 14 seconds for the bad guys.
 

Jimbodandy

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While it will be some time until we emerge from the land of SSS re TL, he seems to have the ability to not only block shots but control the block, keep it in play and give the Celts a 50/50 shot at transition offense as opposed to a ball sent 4 rows deep, side-out 14 seconds for the bad guys.
He also seems to be pretty good (albeit not perfect) at staying on the floor until the bad guy leaves his feet first. Given his age, it speaks to his coachability. And given his springiness, it doesn't seem to prevent him from getting his hand on shots. All good signs going forward.

He'll get schooled here and there jumping too early or getting fouls (like when Wall deftly initiated meaningless contact and scored), but he seems to be ahead of schedule.
 

Marciano490

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While it will be some time until we emerge from the land of SSS re TL, he seems to have the ability to not only block shots but control the block, keep it in play and give the Celts a 50/50 shot at transition offense as opposed to a ball sent 4 rows deep, side-out 14 seconds for the bad guys.
Wasn’t that a knock on him coming out of the draft, that he’d just swipe at the ball and slap it out of bounds or any which way?
 

Eddie Jurak

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Time lord had a rough stint in the first half tonight. 2 minutes, 1 rebound, 1 block, 1 foul, 1 turnover... but an ugly -15.
 

lovegtm

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Time lord had a rough stint in the first half tonight. 2 minutes, 1 rebound, 1 block, 1 foul, 1 turnover... but an ugly -15.
"Stints" and "minutes" are irrelevant to one who manipulates the very fabric of your mortal time. His second...you humans would call it a "half"...was a marked improvement.
 

lovegtm

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It appears we may have a resolution (or, at least, a stand-down) in the Nickname Investiture Controversy:

 

benhogan

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its Timex, they'll do affordable

Just make it green with a shamrock and get it out before Xmas... 2018 limited edition model
 

DeJesus Built My Hotrod

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It appears we may have a resolution (or, at least, a stand-down) in the Nickname Investiture Controversy:

WC Twitter is having none of the "Lob Williams" bullshit nor should they. As we noted in the gamethread, even Scal and Gorman were trolling Ainge/Williams/Cs management a bit with the half-hearted attempts to go with the stupid Lob nickname. He is TimeLord (and apparently its all one word but the "L" is capitalized). Anyone arguing otherwise is wasting their time.
 

lovegtm

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WC Twitter is having none of the "Lob Williams" bullshit nor should they. As we noted in the gamethread, even Scal and Gorman were trolling Ainge/Williams/Cs management a bit with the half-hearted attempts to go with the stupid Lob nickname. He is TimeLord (and apparently its all one word but the "L" is capitalized). Anyone arguing otherwise is wasting their time.
Or, as the Riffsman put it today re Ainge: "I shall tame the dotard with fire"