Malik Williams, PF (2017)

[deacon]

Malik Williams
@leek_willi34

Blessed to say I've received an offer from Georgetown University 🙏🏾 t.co/uey35GUMlX

6'11" forward from Fort Wayne, IN. Consensus top-50 prospect.

ballislife.com/malik-williams/

[Hoyas4Ever]

[Deleted]

[hoyaboya]

Have to assume there's a connection to Anthony Solomon given proximity between Ft. Wayne and South Bend.

Williams has said that he plans to announce on his birthday near the end of August.

[hoyaboya]

Williams is the complete opposite of Obinna. At 6-foot-10, he’s a thin post player and preferred to show off his perimeter game offensively. That’s not to say wasn't willing to play on the block, but his quickness and ball-handling ability along with his perimeter stroke made him a tough matchup offensively. Defensively, his length and athleticism allow him to be a top-notch rim protector.

Iowa, Michigan State, Purdue, Georgetown, Xavier, Louisville and Michigan are among the schools recruiting William. Fran McCaffery, Tom Izzo, Rick Pitino and Matt Painter were all courtside to keep tabs on him along with Mack.

basketballrecruiting.rivals.com/news/uaa-finals-battle-of-rivals150-bigs-highlights-opening-night

[hoyalove4ever]

Looks like Hoyas are only one outside the Midwest. Sounds like a longshot to me, but go for it!

[hoyaboya]

ESPN's Jeff Borzello on Williams:

2. Louisville makes its move for Malik Williams

The second live period was quiet for the most part. Nike, which has nearly 75 percent of the ESPN 100 on its circuit, had its big event during the first period and so most of its top players took the second week off. Throw in USA Basketball, and many of the major targets in the 2017 class weren’t playing the past weekend. The Under Armour Association Finals was the big exception, and the biggest recruiting storyline was Louisville’s continued pursuit of Malik Williams (No. 42). Coach Rick Pitino hasn’t let up on Williams at all this month, showing up at his first game in Philadelphia two weeks ago and continuing to make his presence felt in Atlanta this past weekend. Pitino and/or at least one assistant coach was always at Williams’ games, and there is growing buzz that the Cardinals have emerged as the team to beat in Williams’ recruitment. Several Big Ten schools -- namely Michigan State, Indiana, Purdue and others -- aren’t going to give up anytime soon, but Pitino has made it clear that Williams is the top priority for Louisville.

[hoyaboya]

2. Malik Williams is the most fascinating Class of 2017 prospect

The UAA Finals was a great chance to get multiple viewings of Class of 2017 big man Malik Williams. The native of Indiana is currently hovering in the four-star range in the 30s of most national rankings, but part of the reason he’s there is because he’s the only top-40 national prospect who didn’t participate in a shoe-company league this spring and summer.

The 6-foot-10 Williams is very talented but it’s tough to gauge how talented he is when he plays for a team called Legit Basketball that doesn’t play a lot of other talented high-major prospects. Williams played better competition in the UAA Finals open division and is talent level is noticeable. Williams runs the floor well, can defend the rim a bit and has great touch on his jumper out beyond the three-point line. Not many 6’10” dudes can face up and do the things that Williams can do.

But question marks loom about his toughness. There are times Williams shies away from contact or facing a physical play, and this is coming against guys who aren’t exactly high-level players. After watching big men go to war for most of Peach Jam with big physical and verbal confrontations, it makes me wonder how Williams would have handled those same games in the same settings?

That’s what makes Williams such a fascinating prospect. He looks like a potential McDonald’s All-American based on ability, but he hasn’t been mentally pushed like a lot of these other elite prospects. It’ll be fascinating to see how Williams develops over the next few months and I would love to see him play in some of the big spring all-star games to see how he stacked up with the promising group of big men ahead of him.

collegebasketball.nbcsports.com/2016/07/18/three-observations-from-the-under-armour-association-finals/

[hoyaboya]

Recruiting wrap: Williams mentioned Iowa, Michigan State, Purdue, Georgetown, Xavier, Louisville and Michigan as the schools recruiting him.

Performance: The 6-foot-10 power forward is going to thrive in the new era of basketball where players at his position need to be comfortable playing on the perimeter offensively, while also being able to protect the rim at the other end. The No. 35 player in the 2017 Rivals150 does both very well – well enough to potentially make a lot of money playing basketball at the highest level someday.

basketballrecruiting.rivals.com/news/top-performers-atlanta-heats-up-in-second-july-live-period

[hoyaboya]

The No. 35 ranked player in the class of 2017, 6-foot-10 power forward Malik Williams made jaws drop during a near triple-double performance of 31 points, 15 rebounds and nine blocks in a semifinal win over the Jacksonville Magic where he did everything except make a three-pointer.

In the 17U Classic Division championship game, Williams went for a double-double of 24 points and 12 rebounds in a loss to Detroit EYBL team The Family. The 6-foot-11, 215-pounder possesses a lot of natural tools: he has long arms, he's agile, he runs the floor very well and he has good timing to block shots. Williams' play outside of the paint is impressive. He makes good decisions with the ball, is a skilled passer for his size and his jumper shows promise.

His post-up game is a work in progress and Williams does not have any noticeable bad habits. As he adds strength and confidence in his post game Williams could become the quintessential inside-outside threat. For now, Williams will post up when the opportunity is there but if he has a defender that he can go around, he'll pull him out to the wing and beat him off the dribble.

Williams, who recently took unofficial visits to Michigan State (his third trip there) and Louisville (his first trip there), told us that the recruiting process is getting "a lot busier" and that he gets lots of calls. He also flatly denied a rumor that his recruitment is a two-school race.

Louisville head coach Rick Pitino and Indiana head coach Tom Crean watched Williams on Saturday, as did assistant coaches from Michigan State and Iowa.

basketballrecruiting.rivals.com/news/aau-showcase-malik-williams-goes-off

[deacon]

Made his final 8.

[Hoyas4Ever]

Jul 25, 2016 18:00:34 GMT -5 deacon said:

Made his final 8.

Great Job by JT3 and staff on making his final 8 considering we just offered 15 days ago. He really is the best Post prospect in this class for the Hoyas especially if the team is going to play a much faster style of play. He would give the Hoyas an athletic inside/outside threat that also runs the floor very well while be a very good rim protector. Williams has a great deal of NBA potential. IMO Michigan St. more so than Louisville I think is a the toughest team to beat out for his services but I think Hoyas have a real good shot to do it if he wants to leave the Midwest. The fact we offered 2 weeks and made his final 8 is at least a good sign that theirs mutual interest. Let's get Malik Williams on campus and lock him up. 

[hoyalove4ever]

Hoyas and NC State are only schools on East Coast...interesting.

[hoyaboya]

One of Rivals' top performers from the second July live period:

Recruiting: Iowa, Purdue, Michigan State, Louisville, Indiana and many others have offered.

Performance: A skilled big man who loves to burn defenses with jump shots, Williams did that and much more during a command performance at the AAU Super Showcase. He swatted shots, gobbled up rebounds and played with a motor and level of competitive juice that he's not always been known for.

basketballrecruiting.rivals.com/news/all-rivals-team-top-players-from-the-final-live-period

[Hoyas4Ever]

[Hoyas4Ever]

ORLANDO -- Top 35 big man Malik Williams went off on Saturday as he led his team all the way to the finals of the AAU Super Showcase.

Malik Williams


The No. 35 ranked player in the class of 2017, 6-foot-10 power forward Malik Williams made jaws drop during a near triple-double performance of 31 points, 15 rebounds and nine blocks in a semifinal win over the Jacksonville Magic where he did everything except make a three-pointer.

In the 17U Classic Division championship game, Williams went for a double-double of 24 points and 12 rebounds in a loss to Detroit EYBL team The Family. The 6-foot-11, 215-pounder possesses a lot of natural tools: he has long arms, he's agile, he runs the floor very well and he has good timing to block shots. Williams' play outside of the paint is impressive. He makes good decisions with the ball, is a skilled passer for his size and his jumper shows promise.

His post-up game is a work in progress and Williams does not have any noticeable bad habits. As he adds strength and confidence in his post game Williams could become the quintessential inside-outside threat. For now, Williams will post up when the opportunity is there but if he has a defender that he can go around, he'll pull him out to the wing and beat him off the dribble.

Williams, who recently took unofficial visits to Michigan State (his third trip there) and Louisville (his first trip there), told us that the recruiting process is getting "a lot busier" and that he gets lots of calls. He also flatly denied a rumor that his recruitment is a two-school race.

Louisville head coach Rick Pitino and Indiana head coach Tom Crean watched Williams on Saturday, as did assistant coaches from Michigan State and Iowa.

[EtomicB]

[lucky]

Final 8 to committed in ten days, too bad.

[trillesthoya]

This is why I think we may be too late on quite a few of these recent prospects we've offered. Starting to look like '17's recruiting class will be unimpressive again. Still time though.

[s4hoyas]

I guess the on campus entertainment was just too much for him to resist...