The Value of Vince Williams Jr. is now locked in for years to come

To avoid being too dramatic, I will not suggest that the Grizzlies hit rock bottom earlier this season, though it felt a few times like they were very close.

But there is a positive side even when it feels like one has hit rock bottom.

Of course, there is the old adage “there is no where to go but up.” But also, many times it gives you opportunities to find diamonds in the rough.

And for the Memphis Grizzlies, that seems to be a great way to describe the emergence of Vince Williams Jr. as this season has progressed. The immediate impact and improvement of Vince Williams Jr. has been so noticeable and positive that once Ja Morant returned, the most anticipated move for many in the Grizzlies fanbase became focused on when Vince Williams Jr. would be made a permanent part of the roster. That move finally became a reality on Wednesday:

To make room for Williams Jr. on the roster, the Grizzlies waived veteran big man Bismack Biyomobo. To add even more positivity and potential value to the deal, the three year deal also includes a fourth year team option. While this may seem like an aggressive move for a player who has only contributed at the NBA level for six weeks, the play of Williams Jr. suggests this deal has the potential to be one of best value contracts in the NBA in time. And that is not just due to the value that Williams Jr. has provided through his individual play, but also due to giving the Grizzlies a source of value now and into the future in a place that had been a glaring hole on their roster.

As the Grizzlies slowly, and at times painfully, tried to figure out how to get value out of their wing/foward position while dealing with injuries and ineffectiveness from many players they had high hopes for entering this season, Williams Jr. started to get his chance right after Thanksgiving. Then, as the season entered December, Williams Jr. really started gaining a consistent place in the rotation.

The result was an instant defensive impact the Grizzlies sorely needed with Marcus Smart out of the lineup due to injuries. Before December 1st, the Grizzlies were 16th in DEF RTG in the NBA. Since December 1st, and with Williams Jr. being a part of the rotation and starting frequently, the Grizzlies are 5th in DEF RTG in the NBA. Per Cleaning the Glass, Memphis opponents score 5.4 less points per 100 possessions when Williams Jr. is on the court than when he is off the court. That ranks in the 87th percentile among NBA wings, proving that Williams Jr. already stands out as one of the more impactful defenders in the league among his peers.

Even more eye opening is how Williams Jr. has gelled with the last two Defensive Players of the Year in the NBA, Marcus Smart and Jaren Jackson Jr.. Entering this season, one of the Grizzlies main focuses to get wins was through a defense led by Smart and Jackson Jr. And so far when both are on the court, the Grizzlies produce a 108.1 DEF RTG in non-garbage minutes, which in the 96th percentile among NBA lineups. However, it is truly staggering to see just how much Williams Jr. improves the Grizzlies defense when he is on the court with the two former DPOYs than when he is off:

Defensive Production when Smart, Jackson Jr. are on court but Williams Jr. is off (885 possessions):

Defensive Production when Smart, Jackson Jr., and Williams Jr. are on the court (129 Possessions):

To be fair, the results so far have come from a small sample size. But those numbers legitimately are better than any other current lineup combo in the NBA when it comes to Pts/Poss and eFG%. And this speaks to possibly the biggest trait that has shined so far for Vince Williams Jr: the fact that his play makes the production for the Grizzlies players better. This has clearly been on display since Christmas when Smart and Williams Jr. have finally been able to share a court together. And while the return of Morant has been a big reason why the Grizzlies have won more frequently in recent weeks, featuring this trio on defense is another huge factor in the recent success. And now with Morant out for the season, the true calling card of the Grizzlies will be a defense led by this three outstanding defenders.

And with the fact that Smart, Jackson Jr., and now Williams Jr. are all locked into being in Memphis for at least another two years, that identity will hopefully only continue to grow in prominence, and thus prosperity for the team, over time.

Another awesome thing about Williams Jr. is that his defensive impact stands out in multiple ways. For one, once he became a regular part of the rotation, Williams Jr. has shown a willingness and fearlessness of taking on the assignment of the best offensive players in the NBA. And not only does Williams Jr. take these assignments, he effectively limits the production on a regular basis, from the physicality of Luka Doncic to the quickness of Tyrese Haliburton. This has led to some high praise for Williams Jr. from both Doncic and Kevin Durant. As a result, Williams Jr. has shown he is one of the rare NBA players who can both guard positions 1-5 on the court and multiple offensive skillsets.

But beyond one-on-one defense, Williams Jr. has shown the ability to also improve the biggest weakness of the Grizzlies defense as a whole. Before December, the Grizzlies’ three point defense was among the worst in the league, but since December 1st, it has been near the top 10 in three point defense. And a big reason why is Williams Jr.:

As mentioned above, the Grizzlies had high hopes for Ziaire Williams, David Roddy, and Jake Laravia entering this season. Unfortunately, these three young Grizzlies have struggled throughout most of the year (though Williams has improved as of late.) As a result, opportunity was there for Williams Jr. to provide positive value, and he has done exactly that through his consistent defense. However, while Williams Jr. defense itself is good enough to keep him a part of the Grizzlies rotation, his offensive game has also provided value in meaningful ways for Memphis.

On the surface, the offensive numbers may not seem that impressive, as Williams Jr. is producing a .375/.351/.833 triple slash shooting line. However, though his offensive game definitely is a work in progress, Williams Jr. is contributing where the Grizzlies need productivity the most. For instance, the Grizzlies have been near the bottom of the league in Corner 3P% for much of the season, but have improved in recent weeks. A big reason why is Williams Jr., as he has attempted the most Corner 3s of any Grizzlies player (41) since December 1st and has made 38.1% of them. In time, Desmond Bane, Luke Kennard, and Smart have all taken on a bigger role in the corners, but now with Williams Jr., Memphis has reliable depth in a needed area that could make their offense better moving forward even without Morant.

Another way in which Williams Jr. has clearly filled a need for the Grizzlies is that his play reflects that of a player much bigger than his actual size. With Steven Adams and Brandon Clarke out with long-term injuries, and the inconsistencies of Biyombo, Tillman, and Santi Aldama, Jaren Jackson Jr. has really been the only consistent front court option for Memphis. That was at least the case until December, when Williams Jr. showed up on the wing but produced the play of a big. This occurred through his rebounding, contesting shots, and overall defense. For instance, only 14 players in the NBA this season have produced a rebound rate of 12.5% or better, a block rate of 2.5% or better, and a Defensive Box Plus/Minus value of 1.5 or better:

This group of 14 contains some of the best defensive bigs currently in the NBA. But it also contains only one non-big, and his name is Vince Williams Jr.. The significance of Williams Jr. being apart of this group shows just how much of an impact Williams Jr. makes outside of his defense and his shooting, but also shows that he plays much bigger than his size. For a coaching staff led by Taylor Jenkins that has trended toward featuring small ball lineups, Williams Jr. effectively playing as a big, whether on the wing or as a small ball four, help those lineups remain productive in areas a normal big would. This is another aspect of Williams Jr. that makes him unique for his physical profile, but also highly effective for a Grizzlies roster that has been looking for that profile for years.

Along with the specific areas where Williams Jr. is making the Grizzlies offense and rebounding better as a whole, he is also continuing to improve his whole game. Williams Jr. has 21 assists compared to 9 turnovers over the Grizzlies past 10 games. Though noting truly eye-opening, it does show improved decision-making and Williams Jr. continuing to find new ways to add value. But in an overall perspective of just how valuable Williams Jr. has been, his biggest contribution is how he has allowed the Grizzlies best players to play better when he is on the court:

Desmond Bane when Vince Williams Jr. is off the court vs. Vince Williams Jr. on the court:

(Minutes,Net Rating, OFF RTG, DEF RTG)

Jaren Jackson Jr. with Vince Williams Jr. on the court vs Vince Williams Jr. off the court:

Both Desmond Bane and Jaren Jackson Jr. have been incredible many times this season in terms of their individual offensive play. But their impact on winning certainly took a turn for the better once they started sharing the court with Vince Williams Jr. And that encompasses why the Grizzlies were smart in locking up Williams Jr. for multiple years and why his contract could become so valuable over time:

In many different ways, his skill set compliments the Grizzlies best players to allow for them to play at their best consistently.

The Grizzlies franchise is always looking for players who do exactly this for their young core, and they once again have found exactly that in Vince Williams Jr. And is it not ironic that on a roster that previously featured Dillon Brooks, and now features Marcus Smart, two players who have consistently been compared to franchise icon Tony Allen, Williams Jr. has emerged as perhaps being the perfect embodiment of the Grindfather. And just like Allen, Williams Jr. has shown a fearlessness of doing what ever it takes to win:

So while there may be more debate on the perfect nickname for Williams Jr. over time, there is no doubt one label fits perfectly:

Positive Value.

And for a team that needed that exact thing from its wing rotation more than any other in the league, the emergence of Vince Williams Jr. may be the most positive development for the Grizzlies this year. Now, the Grizzlies get too enjoy that positive value for years to come.