New York Knicks forward Derrick Williams takes a shot against Brooklyn Nets Bojan Bogdanovic. (Photo : Getty Images)
Derrick LeRon Williams entered the NBA as the second overall pick of the Minnesota Timberwolves in the 2011 draft and expectations were high about the former Arizona Wildcats standout.
He played three mercurial seasons with the T'Wolves and was traded to the Sacramento Kings in November of 2013 and the struggle to match those expectations continued.
His best season was during his sophomore year in Minnesota when he averaged career-highs of 12.0 points and 5.5 rebounds despite playing only 24.6 minutes per game. Even as his minutes slightly went higher with the Kings, his numbers went down which led to obscurity.
Williams was waived by Sacramento before the season began and then he was signed by the Knicks in July of last year, hoping to revitalize his drifting career.
After a monster debut game for New York, scoring 24 points and grabbing seven rounds in a huge 122-97 win over the Milwaukee Bucks during opening night, it was never the same for Williams. As time went by, he became buried in Derek Fisher's bench.
His playing time struggles "has gotten worse under Rambis", as per the New York Post's Marc Berman. Fansided also noted that "up until Derek Fisher was fired, Williams was seeing decent playing time coming off the bench. He had a few games with insane scoring outbursts that really gave the Knicks a strong punch off the bench".
However, Rambis gave him the opportunity to start once again for the Knicks after rookie Kristaps Porzingis was sidelined by a minor leg injury.
Williams responded fairly, 10 points and three rebounds in only 19 minutes of play that resulted in a 102-89 victory over the Pistons on Saturday.
The 24-year-old La Mirada, California native is adamant, though, that playing time is of no issue to him.
"I'm just worried about playing well and helping this team win," said Williams, as reported by Berman. "I love the atmosphere here. When we're not at our best, the fans are still there. I'm just worried about the last (19) games. I'm really trying to push, man. If we do that, everything will be good."
Williams have also reiterated that he is more "concerned" about the losing the Knicks are going through than about his own playing time.
"I don't think I'm frustrated because I'm not playing," he said. "I'm frustrated because we're losing. Granted, we all want to play more. That doesn't mean we're going to win. For sure I'm frustrated. I want to go out there and play more. I want to win. That's the main thing."
Williams has a $4.59 million player option at the end of the season and he could choose to opt in or out depending on whether another team will be interested in his services.
