Robert Lee Williams III (born October 17, 1997), nicknamed "Time Lord", is an American professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

player for the Boston Celtics of the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...

(NBA). He played

college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...

for the

Texas A&M Aggies Texas A&M Aggies refers to the students, graduates, and sports teams of Texas A&M University. The nickname " Aggie" was once common at land-grant or "ag" (agriculture) schools in many states. The teams are also referred to as "A&M" or "Texas Agg ...

. Williams was drafted 27th overall in the 2018 NBA draft by the Celtics. He had a breakout season in 2021–22, which saw him being named to the

NBA All-Defensive Second Team The NBA All-Defensive Team is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) honor given since the 1968–69 NBA season to the best defensive players during the regular season. The All-Defensive Team is generally composed of ten players in two ...

and reaching the NBA Finals as the Celtics' starting center.

High school career

Williams attended North Caddo High School in

Vivian, Louisiana Vivian is a town in Caddo Parish, Louisiana, United States and is home to the Red Bud Festival. The population was 3,671 at the 2010 census, down from 4,031 in 2000. According to 2020 census data, Vivian is now the fourth-largest municipality in ...

. A consensus four-star recruit, he ranked 50th overall in

ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). Th ...

’s Top 100 for the class of 2016 and was the number one prospect in the state of

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...

. He committed to

Texas A&M University Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System in 1948. As of late 2021, T ...

to play college basketball.

College career

In his first college game, he scored five points and had five blocks and seven rebounds. He was named SEC Defensive Player of the Year and earned 2nd Team All-SEC honors after averaging 11.9 points and a team-high 8.2 rebounds per game as a freshman in 2016–17. On March 21, despite being credited as a potential first round lottery player, Williams decided to forgo the

2017 NBA draft The 2017 NBA draft was held on June 22, 2017, at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. National Basketball Association (NBA) teams took turns selecting U.S. college basketball players and other eligible players, including international players. ...

and stay for another season at Texas A&M. Following Texas A&M's loss in the 2018 NCAA men's basketball tournament, Williams announced his intention to forgo his final two seasons of collegiate eligibility and declare for the 2018 NBA draft, where he was expected to be a first round selection. Williams was viewed as a potential lottery pick for the

and 2018 NBA draft.

Professional career

Boston Celtics (2018–present)

Come the 2018 NBA draft, instead of being a lottery pick, Williams fell to the 27th overall pick where he was selected by the Boston Celtics due to concerns about his work ethic. On July 5, 2018, the Boston Celtics signed Williams. Williams did not initially make a good impression, being criticized for showing up late and missing team functions. His reputation for missing flights and video meetings caused him to earn the moniker "Time Lord" on online Boston Celtics fandoms. Williams made his professional debut on October 23, 2018, playing 4 minutes during the Celtics' loss to Orlando Magic, before being assigned to the

Maine Red Claws The Maine Celtics (formerly the Maine Red Claws) are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Portland, Maine, and are affiliated with the Boston Celtics. The Maine Celtics play their home games at the Portland Expo B ...

on November 2. Throughout November and December, Williams split his time between the

G League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) official minor league basketball organization. The league was known as the National Basketball Development League (NBDL) from 2001 to 2005, and the NBA Dev ...

and the NBA, before starting to gain more game time with the Celtics following an injury to

Al Horford Alfred Joel Horford Reynoso (born June 3, 1986) is a Dominican professional basketball player for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "Big Al", Horford is a five-time NBA All-Star and is the highest paid L ...

. On December 11, 2018, Williams blocked two shots by

NBA All Star The National Basketball Association (NBA) All-Star Game is an annual exhibition basketball game. It is the main event of the NBA All-Star Weekend. Originally, the All-Star Game featured a conference-based format, featuring a team composed of al ...

Anthony Davis during a game against the New Orleans Pelicans. During the 2021 NBA playoffs, Williams dealt with a

turf toe A metatarsophalangeal joint sprain is an injury to the connective tissue between the foot and a toe (at a metatarsophalangeal joint, one of the joints in the ball of the foot). When the big toe is involved, it is known as "turf toe". Causes Turf ...

injury. In Game 1 of the first round against the Brooklyn Nets, Williams blocked 9 shots to set a team playoff record for blocks in a game. He also scored 11 points and grabbed 9 rebounds. Despite this record, the team lost the game. The injury hobbled Williams for the remainder of the series and Williams left Game 3 with a sprained ankle after playing just 6 minutes. He missed games 4 and 5, and the team lost the series 4–1. Williams 2022

On December 31, 2021, Williams recorded his first career triple-double, putting up 10 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists, in a 123–108 win over the Phoenix Suns. On March 28, 2022, the Celtics announced that Williams had suffered a torn meniscus in his left knee and would be out indefinitely. Two days later, he underwent surgery and was ruled out for at least 4-to-6 weeks.

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

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Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

, 32 , , 2 , , 8.8 , , .706 , , , , .600 , , 2.5 , , .2 , , .3 , , 1.3 , , 2.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 29 , , 1 , , 13.4 , , .727 , , , , .647 , , 4.4 , , .9 , , .8 , , 1.2 , , 5.2 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 52 , , 13 , , 18.9 , , .721 , , .000 , , .616 , , 6.9 , , 1.8 , , .8 , , 1.8 , , 8.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 61 , , 61 , , 29.6 , , .736 , , .000 , , .722 , , 9.6 , , 2.0 , , .9 , , 2.2 , , 10.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 35 , , 20 , , 23.5 , , .747 , , .000 , , .610 , , 8.3 , , 1.4 , , .6 , , 1.4 , , 8.0 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 209 , , 97 , , 20.5 , , .732 , , .000 , , .656 , , 6.9 , , 1.4 , , .7 , , 1.7 , , 7.3

Playoffs

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, 3 , , 0 , , 4.3 , , .500 , , .000 , , 1.000 , , 2.3 , , .0 , , .0 , , .0 , , 1.3 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global social and economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, worldwide lockdowns and the largest economic recession since the Great Depression in t ...

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, 13 , , 0 , , 11.5 , , .742 , , .000 , , .333 , , 3.9 , , .8 , , .2 , , .5 , , 3.7 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2021 File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October 2021 coup in Sudan; Crowd shortly after t ...

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, 3 , , 0 , , 15.3 , , .643 , , .000 , , .500 , , 5.0 , , .7 , , .3 , , 3.0 , , 6.3 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2022 File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretariat; The global monkeypo ...

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, 17 , , 15 , , 23.2 , , .679 , , .000 , , .893 , , 6.2 , , 1.0 , , .7 , , 2.2 , , 7.7 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 36 , , 15 , , 16.7 , , .688 , , .000 , , .789 , , 4.9 , , .8 , , .4 , , 1.5 , , 5.6

College

, - , style="text-align:left;", 2016–17 , style="text-align:left;",

Texas A&M Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System in 1948. As of late 2021, T ...

, 31 , , 17 , , 25.8 , , .558 , , .111 , , .590 , , 8.2 , , 1.4 , , .7 , , 2.5 , , 11.9 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2017–18 , style="text-align:left;",

, 30 , , 23 , , 25.6 , , .668 , , .000 , , .471 , , 9.2 , , 1.4 , , .8 , , 2.6 , , 10.4 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 61 , , 40 , , 25.7 , , .624 , , .067 , , .541 , , 8.7 , , 1.4 , , .7 , , 2.5 , , 11.1

Personal life

In July 2018, Williams was revealed to have

popliteal artery entrapment syndrome The popliteal artery entrapment syndrome (PAES) is an uncommon pathology that occurs when the popliteal artery is compressed by the surrounding popliteal fossa myofascial structures. This results in claudication and chronic leg ischemia. This co ...

(PAES) in both legs. If it degenerates, the vascular disease could require a surgical procedure in the future.

Nickname

Early in his career, Williams has attracted the nickname "Time Lord" from Celtics fans, in part based upon his timekeeping faux pas upon signing with the team. This has, in turn, gained attention from Timex.

Danny Ainge Daniel Ray Ainge ( ; born March 17, 1959) is an American former professional basketball player, coach, and former professional baseball player who serves as an executive for the Utah Jazz of the National Basketball Association (NBA). A three-s ...

has been recorded as preferring the nickname "Lob".

References

External links

*
Texas A&M Aggies bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Robert III 1997 births Living people North Caddo High School alumni American men's basketball players Basketball players from Shreveport, Louisiana Boston Celtics draft picks Boston Celtics players Centers (basketball) Maine Red Claws players Power forwards (basketball) Texas A&M Aggies men's basketball players