We are on to year two of Grant McCasland’s tenure and while this is about four months too early by normal standards …. I am obsessive and this is one of my favorite things to do. Same as last year I am starting with the returners. This is coming from my very flawed opinion and I'm not a wordsmith.
Darrion Williams
Stats and Misc. Facts:
Coming into the season I thought Darrion would be one of Tech’s better players and a solid starter with all conference upside. I loved his Swiss Army Knife-like versatility and complete game. But boy I was way off on how good he would be so fast and how much he would grow. Not only was he one of Tech’s “better” players in my mind he was undoubtedly their best by season’s end. And it took him a whopping one season to reach all-conference level.
By looking at the counting stats they look nice but don’t scream “Star” but if you dig deeper D5’s advanced numbers and percentages are insane. There’s just no getting around it. The dude averaged 13 ppg, 8 boards, 2 assists and 1 steal per game in conference play on 53/52/88 shooting splits. That’s crazy. Williams was one of the best 10 players in the B12 last year, is clearly the foundation for Tech moving forward and has a chance to be one of the better wings in the country with another leap.
Offensively, Darrion was a joy to watch this past season. He started off relatively slow and as more of a supporting cast member rather than one of the focal points of the offense. Some of this was due to the way the team started before Devan Cambridge’s injury. Once Tech embraced more of a 4 out, spacing and shooting oriented lineup with D5 as the 4 his game really exploded. The first thing that pops to me whether looking at the stats or on tape is his spot up shooting. D5 was already a good shooter when he arrived at Tech, but he blossomed into one of the best CnS guys in the country. His shot is smooth, repeatable with a fluid (if not quick) release. At this stage he is mostly a spot-up shooter, but he did flash some as a movement shooter… dribbling into threes or getting his body into the defender and hitting sidestep or fading contested middies. Also, he is just about the best zone buster you could ever scheme up.
Outside of his shooting, Darrion has a nice mix of versatility to his offensive game. When playing on the wing or confronted with an advantageous matchup with a smaller or like sized player Williams can punish them in the post. He has a nice feel with his back to the basket and can get deep position where he likes to back the defender down. D5 has the drop step over both shoulders down and has a baby fade way in his bag for a counter. Nothing fancy but it is extremely effective. Another thing that makes him so dangerous in the post is his vision. D5 has the passing ability to punish defenses who double him in the post by hitting the open man for a bucket. He is especially crafty as an interior passer. Williams’ assist numbers might not have been gaudy, but he racked up a ton of hockey assists imo.
Off the bounce is where he has the most opportunity to grow. Williams has a solid handle for a guy his size and uses his body very well to absorb contact and finish but to this point he’s been more of a connector or finisher than self-creator. He doesn’t have a very quick first step, or the advanced handle needed to consistently beat defenders off the bounce. And he did struggle to finish around length at times due to his lack of explosiveness. D5 mitigates this some by being an excellent cutter and put back guy on the offensive glass but this is one area of his game that will need to grow. He might not ever be an elite 1o1 offensive player. But if he tightens the handle and grows on ball…. with his shooting and inside-out game D5 could be one of the best players in the country. I did see flashes of self-creation last year in the Kansas and UCF games where he took advantages of switches and dribbled into several 3’s and midrange jumpers.
On the glass and defensively, D5 is one of the best wings in the conference. While not overly long Darrion has a thick frame and strong lower base. Simply put, he is hard as hell to move. He has a knack for the ball whether when rebounding or defending. On the glass he has tremendous timing and a knack for establishing good position. He isn’t going to outjump most other players, but he will get to his spots and uses his leverage to live on the defensive glass. His craft when boxing out is exceptional.
Defensively he has a great understanding of spacing and where to be on the court. That sounds simplistic but you’d be surprised how much that really matters. Darrion has good hands and while his steal numbers are average, he generates a ton of deflections and is very active as an off-ball defender/free safety. On the ball he uses his strength well and will get into the body of the offensive player. His one shortcoming is that he doesn’t move very well in space and can be taken advantage of by quicker perimeter players. D5 is more of a well-rounded defender with great instincts and the ability to cause chaos off-ball than he is a lock down on ball type.
Where do we go from here? It’s an interesting question with D5. Because “here” is already an all-conference level, foundational piece of Tech’s team. The next step for D5 in my opinion is to simply take what he is already doing and scale it up. That means increasing the amount of 3’s taken from ~2.5/game to 5 and bumping up a usage rate that was barely in the top 10 of the team into the top 5. Of course, this means his efficiency might take a dip but D5 was one of the most efficient guys in the country last year. If D5 can do this and get better as a self-initiator there’s no reason to doubt him averaging around 15 ppg, 7 rpg, and 3 apg next year and being 1st team All-B12. Personally, I am insanely high on him and think this is a very realistic outcome. It’s going to be fun as hell to watch.
Darrion Williams
Stats and Misc. Facts:
- Counting Stats: 11.4 ppg, 7.5 RPG, 2.5 apg, 1.2 spg
- 49.4 FG%
- 45.8 3p% (2.9 3PA/ game)
- 87.5% FT (2.4 FTA/game)
- 4.4 Win shares (1st on team) , 1.7 Defensive Win Shares (1st on team), 2.7 Offensive Win Shared (1st on team)
- 17.1% usage rate (9th on team)
- 3rd in conference in RPG
- 4th in conference in TS % (62%)
- 3rd team all conference
- Best Games: KU (30 points, 11 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, 1 block), Okie State (18 points, 9 rebounds, 1 assist, 5 steals), Baylor (16 points, 11 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal), WVU (17 points, 9 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals)
Coming into the season I thought Darrion would be one of Tech’s better players and a solid starter with all conference upside. I loved his Swiss Army Knife-like versatility and complete game. But boy I was way off on how good he would be so fast and how much he would grow. Not only was he one of Tech’s “better” players in my mind he was undoubtedly their best by season’s end. And it took him a whopping one season to reach all-conference level.
By looking at the counting stats they look nice but don’t scream “Star” but if you dig deeper D5’s advanced numbers and percentages are insane. There’s just no getting around it. The dude averaged 13 ppg, 8 boards, 2 assists and 1 steal per game in conference play on 53/52/88 shooting splits. That’s crazy. Williams was one of the best 10 players in the B12 last year, is clearly the foundation for Tech moving forward and has a chance to be one of the better wings in the country with another leap.
Offensively, Darrion was a joy to watch this past season. He started off relatively slow and as more of a supporting cast member rather than one of the focal points of the offense. Some of this was due to the way the team started before Devan Cambridge’s injury. Once Tech embraced more of a 4 out, spacing and shooting oriented lineup with D5 as the 4 his game really exploded. The first thing that pops to me whether looking at the stats or on tape is his spot up shooting. D5 was already a good shooter when he arrived at Tech, but he blossomed into one of the best CnS guys in the country. His shot is smooth, repeatable with a fluid (if not quick) release. At this stage he is mostly a spot-up shooter, but he did flash some as a movement shooter… dribbling into threes or getting his body into the defender and hitting sidestep or fading contested middies. Also, he is just about the best zone buster you could ever scheme up.
Outside of his shooting, Darrion has a nice mix of versatility to his offensive game. When playing on the wing or confronted with an advantageous matchup with a smaller or like sized player Williams can punish them in the post. He has a nice feel with his back to the basket and can get deep position where he likes to back the defender down. D5 has the drop step over both shoulders down and has a baby fade way in his bag for a counter. Nothing fancy but it is extremely effective. Another thing that makes him so dangerous in the post is his vision. D5 has the passing ability to punish defenses who double him in the post by hitting the open man for a bucket. He is especially crafty as an interior passer. Williams’ assist numbers might not have been gaudy, but he racked up a ton of hockey assists imo.
Off the bounce is where he has the most opportunity to grow. Williams has a solid handle for a guy his size and uses his body very well to absorb contact and finish but to this point he’s been more of a connector or finisher than self-creator. He doesn’t have a very quick first step, or the advanced handle needed to consistently beat defenders off the bounce. And he did struggle to finish around length at times due to his lack of explosiveness. D5 mitigates this some by being an excellent cutter and put back guy on the offensive glass but this is one area of his game that will need to grow. He might not ever be an elite 1o1 offensive player. But if he tightens the handle and grows on ball…. with his shooting and inside-out game D5 could be one of the best players in the country. I did see flashes of self-creation last year in the Kansas and UCF games where he took advantages of switches and dribbled into several 3’s and midrange jumpers.
On the glass and defensively, D5 is one of the best wings in the conference. While not overly long Darrion has a thick frame and strong lower base. Simply put, he is hard as hell to move. He has a knack for the ball whether when rebounding or defending. On the glass he has tremendous timing and a knack for establishing good position. He isn’t going to outjump most other players, but he will get to his spots and uses his leverage to live on the defensive glass. His craft when boxing out is exceptional.
Defensively he has a great understanding of spacing and where to be on the court. That sounds simplistic but you’d be surprised how much that really matters. Darrion has good hands and while his steal numbers are average, he generates a ton of deflections and is very active as an off-ball defender/free safety. On the ball he uses his strength well and will get into the body of the offensive player. His one shortcoming is that he doesn’t move very well in space and can be taken advantage of by quicker perimeter players. D5 is more of a well-rounded defender with great instincts and the ability to cause chaos off-ball than he is a lock down on ball type.
Where do we go from here? It’s an interesting question with D5. Because “here” is already an all-conference level, foundational piece of Tech’s team. The next step for D5 in my opinion is to simply take what he is already doing and scale it up. That means increasing the amount of 3’s taken from ~2.5/game to 5 and bumping up a usage rate that was barely in the top 10 of the team into the top 5. Of course, this means his efficiency might take a dip but D5 was one of the most efficient guys in the country last year. If D5 can do this and get better as a self-initiator there’s no reason to doubt him averaging around 15 ppg, 7 rpg, and 3 apg next year and being 1st team All-B12. Personally, I am insanely high on him and think this is a very realistic outcome. It’s going to be fun as hell to watch.
