2019 NBA Draft: Ranking the 16 Best (and Worst) Lottery Picks for Atlanta Hawks
By Chris Guest
#11 — Grant Williams
Grant Williams out of Tennessee and his erstwhile Volunteers teammate Admiral Schofield were two of this writer’s favorite players in NCAA men’s basketball last season, and that still holds true to this day.
Williams, in particular, is a brilliant basketball mind that always seems to be thinking one step ahead on offense, as he was his team’s hub at the elbow for much of his junior season. Beyond that, Williams’s rippling physique and fairly quick feet means he projects to be able to slide his feet on the perimeter and use his bulk in the paint to deter hulking centers as well.
Though Williams has a fairly high floor as a player, he slides down this list due to the fact that his fit alongside John Collins is, once again, suspect. Though Williams shot great from the free throw line in his junior season (81.9 percent), his three-point percentage was 32.6 percent. Not great.
However, free throw percentage at the college level is actually a better indicator than three-point percentage, so maybe Williams will be a reliable three-point hoister at the next level.
If the Atlanta Hawks opt to draft Grant Williams in the 2019 NBA Draft, it won’t be the end of the world, but it seems likely that there are better fits on the board to be explored beyond the 20-year-old junior.