Phoenix Suns: Draft Workouts Day 9 Recap
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A Phoenix, AZ native, Alan Williams was under the radar for most college basketball fans — unless you were looking at who was leading the nation in rebounding. A 22-year-old coming off his senior season at UC Santa Barbara, Williams said it was a dream come true to work out for his hometown NBA team.
“Chills,” he said about donning the Suns’ colors. “Because you grow up watching these guys and they’re your hometown, so just to be able to work out in front of them and possibly try and develop a relationship and get picked up by them, it’s something that’s very special.”
Williams is currently projected as a second-rounder in most mock drafts, but he believes his elite rebounding (11.8 per game last season) is an NBA skill he can hang his hat on. His eyes practically lit up when he was asked what makes him such a great rebounder.
"I study the game. I study the rebounding. I love to do it, it’s something that I really take pride in and my dad has drilled it in my mind and heart for so many years. It’s so impactful to go out there and get a defensive rebound, it’s stopping a possession. You have the opportunity to stop the offense from scoring. It’s just such a huge impact and I think that NBA teams value it so much and I think that my ability to go out there and study my teammates’ shots and study my opponents’ shots to know where the ball’s going and track the flight of it makes me one of the top guys doing that."
McDonough also acknowledged Williams’ impressive abilities on the glass.
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“He’s a guy who does his work early, and what I mean by that is before the shot’s going up or as it’s going up, he’s already boxing out and holding his guy off to get offensive rebounds and put-backs, so he had a very productive career and it’s always good to see local guys to well,” he said.
Williams is projected as a second round pick and though there are questions about his conditioning, he could be an option at No. 44 for a team that needs a little interior toughness.
Nedim Buza (a 6’8″ small forward, 20-year-old from Bosnia and Herzegovina), Will Cummings (a 6’2″ guard from Temple) and Jarvis Threatt (a 6’2″ point guard from the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, an NBA D-League team) rounded out the second group of draft workout participants.
Next: Devin Booker: Phoenix Suns 2015 Draft Profile