Cody Williams Scouting Report
Jalen Williams' brother is an upside play.
Name: Cody Williams
Birth date: November 20, 2004
Height/Weight: 6’7/178
Wingspan/ standing reach: 7’1/8’7
Hand size: 9
Position: Wing
Pre-Draft team: Colorado
Tools: Defense, frame
Background: Brother of Oklahoma City Thunder wing Jalen Williams. Member of PAC-12 All-Freshman team and was a top 5 recruit. Battled ankle and wrist injuries throughout the season that brought some of his stats and play down.
Season stats: 12 PPG 3 RPG 1.6 APG 0.6 SPG 0.7 BPG 2 TOPG on 55/41.5/71
Pros:
High defensive upside both on and off the ball
Plays good off-ball D and can quickly recover to closeouts due to length and athleticism
Good motor and follows the ball + will dive for loose balls
Great frame to grow into
Excellent finisher at the rim with good touch
Has good control of his shot even when he takes a somewhat out of control shot
Cons:
Jump shot consistency is worrisome; guide hand often doesn’t stay up and can sometimes cause a flick
Takes him a while at times to read the defense when opponents are shading him towards his weaknesses (i.e: making him go left)
Doesn’t easily separate from defenders on drives
Needs to add strength and get stronger; gets pushed off his spot easily defensively (@UCLA game)
Swing Skills:
How much muscle does he need to add, and how fast? What happens if he doesn’t get noticeably stronger?
Summary:
Cody Williams is a raw wing with defensive upside, some on-ball creation ability, and hit-or-miss shooting upside.
Statistically, the freshmen 1st round picks around Williams’ height (6’7-6’9) with a low BPM (4 and under) have an extremely low hit rate. Williams’ 2.9 BPM ranks as dangerously low, and outside of a couple outliers, the hit rate in this statistical archetype appears to be low barring outlier development. Any player with a black line means that was not their draft year, which would have made the search misleading.
Beyond the stats, Williams’ decision-making is shaky, making his ‘inaction consequences’ on the court more alarming than any one statistical mistake. One of the first examples I came across was this play below at the end of the half, when he has the drive left into the lane wide open, but 3 seconds later finds the opening, ultimately making the layup. While the result was good, the process was brutal: in the NBA 3 seconds is a long time, and this lane would have disappeared. Additionally, a good NBA defense pressures him and penalizes him for missing the opening. This is not the only example, as the videos section (decision-making) has examples beyond that of both bad shot selection and missing obvious plays.
Defensively, Williams has tools with his size, length, athleticism, and motor combination, but struggled to dominate for extended periods of time. Part of that comes down to needing to get stronger, because he is often pushed off his spots. Against UCLA, he defended numerous drives, and UCLA’s focus on those drives was to be physical with him, which usually took him out of the play. When Williams is running full speed while defending drives, he is vulnerable to physical moves that will send him flying. This gives offenses open shots and strong advantages, which is where Williams is lacking on the ball defensively. However, with a desire to win every play, good recovery ability, strong off-ball defense, and a motor that doesn’t stop, once he fills out his frame his defense could be valuable to a winning team. The defensive upside may be the most appealing part of Williams’ game, showcasing upside in versatility to defend point guards, wings, and forwards.
With the wrist & ankle injuries that kept him out for some time towards the end of the season, along with a mixed bag of fool’s gold potential in the shooting (high three point percentage on low volume and subpar free throw percentage), Williams is one of the most contextual scouts. He needs the right team and fit to help him not only fill out his body, but also improve decision-making to help him transition from theoretical talent to practical talent in hitting his high ceiling.
Projected draft range: 6-17
Expected role: Defensive-minded wing that offers some on-ball abilities as a slasher.
Unplayable if: Jump shooting ends up not translating up, and his body doesn’t develop quickly enough.
Exceeds expectations if: Decision-making woes improve with age, and he can shoot near league average as a jump shooter.
Videos:
Lack of strength limiting him offensively
Shot chart:
