Holly MacKenzie - Raptors.com
After 10 years in the league, Lou Williams has seen enough of the NBA to appreciate the good thing the Toronto Raptors have going this season. He isn’t taking anything for granted after returning from a torn ACL in 2012-2013. He’s having fun.
Earlier this week, Williams was named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week. It was the first in his career. On Wednesday, he returned to Atlanta for the first time since the Hawks traded him to the Raptors and dropped 22 points on his former team while helping his current one add to its league-best 13-2 record.
“He’s a scorer,” head coach Dwane Casey said. “He’s a born scorer.”
After the ACL tear in January 2013, Williams spent the past season and a half rehabbing from the first serious injury of a professional career that started when he jumped from high school to the NBA.
“When you're sitting there and you have a cast on and wheelchair and crutches and can't lift your leg up, you can't ride a bike, you can't run, you can't jog, obviously there's going to be some doubt there,” Williams said. “Two years later it's great to see some fruits of the labour, to feel myself back to 100 percent, being back healthy and having some success.”
Williams worked tirelessly to get himself back to his pre-injury self. He couldn’t have predicted that things would work out so well with the Raptors, or that he’d end up in Toronto, but he’s enjoying the ride and has been embraced by his new teammates and coaching staff.
“It’s amazing how he can go out there and run off the points he can in the short amount of time he’s out there,” DeMar DeRozan said. “The energy with the second unit is definitely amazing. That’s something that was lacking last year and we got a lot better this year and it think that’s why we’re able to close out a lot of games this year that we couldn’t last year.”
Through 15 games, Williams is averaging 14.2 points and 1.5 steals per game. He’s also getting to the line 4.6 times a night. Casey knew Williams could score. What has impressed him the most has been Williams’ commitment on the other end of the floor.
“The one positive on the defensive side is his grasp of the defensive schemes,” Casey said. “His ability to guard his position, his ability to play passing lanes, play the weak side, that’s been a huge plus for us. To bounce back from his injury the way he has has been great.”
While the rehabilitation process was arduous, Williams knew it was necessary and unavoidable The other key to bouncing back was finding support in speaking with others who had been through the same process.
“I had a lot of confidence in just talking to other guys that had been through the same injury and seeing them play at a high level again,” Williams said. “Kyle [Lowry] was one of those people. He went through it in college and to see him get back [was helpful]. I was [having] day-to-day [conversations] with [Rajon] Rondo as well. Just seeing other guys having success with it and having confidence that you'll do everything necessary to get back.”
Having seen the ups and downs that accompany an 82-game season, Williams is laid back, low-key and honest when evaluating where his team is and where it hopes to go.
“This is the NBA, anybody can beat anybody,” Williams said. “Everybody's professionals, everybody's pros and you expect guys to come in and play at a high level. The season's just getting going. It's just starting to get good now. If this is the roof for us then we're in trouble. I think we have a lot more things that we should accomplish and other teams that we need to beat in order to be taken seriously in this league.”
It’s easy to see what Williams brings on court. In addition to his ability to put points on the board in a hurry and close out quarters, his veteran savviness has provided a boost to the locker room and his teammates. Many of whom are playing with the weight of serious expectation for the first time.
“We’re young,” Williams said. “We’re very confident in the group that we have and when we come into games we expect to win.”