Speaking to the media from the Walt Disney World bubble, Marvin Williams shared why he believes the recent hiatus can help him with the Milwaukee Bucks.
As players return to practice, and with the prospect of scrimmages and regular season seeding games looming, one of the more interesting things about the NBA’s restart will be examining how different players will react to their strange environment and to the time on the sidelines they’ve all dealt with in recent months.
On that front, an obvious conclusion that could be jumped to is that the most professional and focused players will stand to be in the best shape when play picks up, having perhaps found innovative ways to work on their game or conditioning from home while practice facilities were closed.
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When it comes to the Milwaukee Bucks, one of the more interesting players in that regard will be veteran forward Marvin Williams.
Williams had only recently joined the Bucks following a buyout from the Charlotte Hornets when COVID-19 brought the season to a stop back in March, and had endured something of a mixed bag in terms of his on-court production as he tried to get acclimated with his new team.
Last month, in taking a closer look at where Williams stands with the Bucks, I made the case that the former UNC Tar Heel may end up having been given something of a helping hand with the time off in the last few months.
Speaking to the media via video call in recent days, as can be found on the Bucks’ official website, Williams made it clear that he does in fact see the time off from playing as something of a blessing in disguise for him, and something that has allowed him to develop a greater understanding of his team and how exactly they want to play.
"“Selfishly, in a way, it’s benefited me a lot. In a sense that I’ve been able to slow down a little bit. I’ve been able to get used to Milwaukee. I’ve had a chance to slow down and kind of learn the offense a little bit. My body is healed, I feel a lot better now. I’ve definitely benefited from it, so I’m certainly thankful.”"
More generally, Williams also laid out the case for why the veteran Bucks are in good shape as they resume practice, and hopefully will have a smooth path to returning to game shape ahead of the start of games being played.
"“I think guys feel good. We have a team full of professionals, a lot of veterans that have been around the league for a long time. So guys kind of know what they should be doing when you’re not playing basketball. So I think guys have done a great job of taking care of their bodies. Obviously you still have to work your way back into game shape, and guys are going to start working on that the next couple of weeks, but in general, I think guys are in pretty good shape and they fell good to be back.”"
If Williams’ confidence in his own situation being boosted by the time off afforded to him in recent months does end up translating to the court, it could be a real game-changer for the Bucks in the postseason.