Matt Williams is the Heat’s Summer Leaguer most likely to make the NBA
By Wes Goldberg
Three-point shooting is a premium value in today’s NBA, and Matt Williams can stroke it from beyond the arc. He might have a shot at landing one of the Miami Heat’s two-way roster spots.
Matt Williams, the prolific college three-point shooter and part of the Miami Heat’s Summer League team, has a chance to make the NBA. Per the Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson:
"The scout, who requested anonymity because he is not authorized by his team to speak publicly, said beyond Bam Adebayo, Okaro White and potentially Hammons, the Heat’s Summer Leaguer with the best chance of making the NBA is 6-5 former UCF guard Matt Williams.[…]“He looked much more like a guy who could get a two-way contract,” the scout said. “He has the one skill – three-point shooting. He’s totally one dimensional but is a good athlete, has a good body and a good looking shot. His numbers from college on threes were pretty good. He’s more viable than I initially thought.”"
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Williams is averaging 9.9 points and 2.6 rebounds in eight Summer League games, while shooting 39 percent from three-point range.
He got hot in the desert of Las Vegas, draining 18 of his 40 shots (45 percent) from beyond the arc.
He shot 38.4 percent on three-pointers at UCF, making 274 threes in five collegiate seasons.
The Heat don’t have many pure three-point shooters on the roster outside of Wayne Ellington.
Like Ellington, Williams is primarily used as a shooter and can space the floor way outside of just the three-point arc.
Such as fashionable these days, Williams routinely pulls up from several feet behind the three-point line. This isn’t just flashy, it helps spread the floor even more.
As I pointed out on this week’s Locked On Heat mailbag, Williams would be an interesting choice to land one of Miami’s pair of two-way contracts.
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He needs to round out his game in other areas (especially defensively), but he could potentially backfill Ellington’s spot next season (Ellington’s contract expires next summer). You can never have enough three-point shooting.