On the court, a former Boston Celtics player was figuratively and literally, the center of attention outside of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown.
No. 44, Robert Williams, could block shots and, if needed, drop the ball in the basket and be a force. But his knees often had different ideas. Injuries kept Williams off the court and on the sideline. As valuable and as beloved as he was in the community, that doesn’t equate to success in the field of action.
As a result, the former Texas A&M big man was traded, along with Malcolm Brogdon and two first-round picks to the Trail Blazers for Jrue Holiday, whom Portland acquired from the Milwaukee Bucks in the Damian Lillard trade.
At the time, Beantown was devastated, but speaking strictly from a basketball standpoint and with word coming down that Williams would be undergoing surgery to repair damage to his kneecap and ligaments, the Celtics walk away victorious. Jayson Tatum was undoubtedly upset about the trade and losing Williams and Brogdon.
“Sad about Malcolm and Rob,” Tatum said. “You spend so much time with guys, over one year or five years, right? Then one day, they’re just on a different team, because there’s a lot of genuine emotions and relationships with that. Same thing with Kristaps and that trade, excited to have him … but it was tough to see Grant and Smart leave. I spent my entire career with Smart, and that’s somebody I thought I’d play my entire career with. He was the most beloved Celtic that we had on this team, the heart-and-soul. It’s going to be different.”
The Boston Celtics will miss Robert Williams but they are moving forward and so far, everything seems to be fine
It’s honestly sad, and this isn’t like Ben Volin of the Boston Globe looking to troll or Ari Wasserman of The Athletic looking to piss people off, or even Paul Finebaum and Stephen A. Smith of ESPN looking to spew hot takes to generate clicks. This is honestly a very sad story.
No one forgets how vital Williams was during Boston’s run to the NBA Finals before bowing out to Steph, Klay, and Golden State in six games. Oh yes, Draymond too, we can’t forget him.
Despite their most recent loss to the Hornets, a bad one we might add considering how a late lead was blown (reminiscent of old habits), Boston seems to be moving on quite nicely with their new core. That doesn’t mean thinking about what could have been had Williams stayed in Boston or even if he had to leave, what his career could have been prior to this year if his knees were healthy.
Still, Boston seems just fine. Right now at 11-3, Beantown is atop the Eastern Conference, but Philadelphia, now without James Harden, is right behind them in addition to Milwaukee and reigning conference champion Miami.
If Boston were to somehow win it all, not having No. 44 might be very bittersweet, considering he was there in the finals with the team just a few years ago. However, it is a business, and sometimes, the hardest deals to make turn into rewards. You may not like it in the beginning, but in the end, it is worth going through the pain.