BEFORE NBA
COLLEGE CAREER: 2018-19 (Junior): First player to win SEC Player of the Year in
back-to-back seasons since 1995; Only 10
players have ever achieved the feat, including VFLs Bernard King and Dale Ellis
and all-time greats such as Pete Maravich, Shaquille
O’Neal and Corliss Williamson…Joined Bernard King and Dale Ellis as the only
Vols to ever be named consensus first-team All-
Americans by the NCAA…One of 15 players named to the Men’s National Ballot for
the John R. Wooden Award…One of five players
named a 2019 John R. Wooden Award finalist…One of four players named a 2019
Citizen Naismith Trophy Men’s Player of the Year
finalist…One of four players named a 2018-19 Oscar Robertson Trophy
finalist…One of five players named a 2019 Karl Malone Power
Forward of the Year Award finalist…Was one of 10 semifinalists named to the
2019 Naismith Defensive Player of the Year Award…Was
one of only 10 Division I players to total more than 500 points, 250 rebounds
and 100 assists (696/278/117)…His 23-of-23 performance
from the free-throw line at Vanderbilt (1/23/19) stands as the most free throws
made without a miss by any player in Division I in the
last 60 years and was second all-time (24-of-24 by Oklahoma State’s Arlen Clark
vs. Colorado, 3/7/1959). It also broke the Tennessee
records for most free throws in a game and consecutive free throws made in a
single game, surpassing Bill Justus’ 22 total makes and
18 consecutive makes vs. Ohio on March 17, 1969…His 43 points at Vanderbilt
(1/23/19) were the most by a Vol since all-time leading
scorer Allan Houston also dropped 43 against LSU on Feb. 10, 1990. Williams’
effort also tied for the fifth-most points in a single game
in school history…Became the ninth Vol to ever to be the SEC’s scoring champion
after averaging 18.8 points per game; 11th time
overall a Tennessee player was the league’s scoring champ (Bernard King and
Tony White each did it twice)…His 696 points during
his junior year ranked sixth all time in school history for a single season and
marked the most points by a Vol since Allan Houston’s
717 in 1991-92; his 55 blocks were tied for sixth in a season in program
history…His 213 free throws and 260 free-throw attempts both
ranked as the second-highest totals in program history…Ranked in the top 10 of
the SEC in scoring (1st/18.8 ppg), field-goal percent-
age (2nd/.565), free-throw percentage (5th/.819), rebounding (6th/7.5 rpg) and
assist/turnover ratio (10th/1.4) as a junior…Finished
his Tennessee career ranked in the top 10 of UT’s all-time career lists for
blocks (3rd/160), free-throw attempts (3rd/661), free throws
made (4th/501) and offensive rebounds (8th/257); he also finished 12th in
scoring (1,629)…No 2018-19 junior in Division I made (501)
or attempted (661) more career free throws than Williams; 31 percent (213 of
696) of his junior-year scoring came at the charity
stripe…Led the SEC in player efficiency rating (31.3) and was second in
offensive rating (130.5) according to Basketball Reference…
Finished with at least 20 points and 10 rebounds in four games; posted five
double-doubles…Started 98 straight games dating to his
freshman season…Named the Citizen Naismith Trophy Player of the Week for
posting a career-high 43 points while shooting 10-of-15 from the field and a program-record 23-of-23 from the free-throw line and also
tallied eight rebounds, four blocks, two assists and
a key steal in the overtime win at Vanderbilt (1/23/19)…Named to the initial
watch list for the 2019 John R. Wooden Award Player of
the Year Award…2017-18 (Sophomore): 2018 SEC Player of the Year led the Vols in
scoring (15.2 ppg), was second in blocks (44) and
rebounding (6.0 rpg) and finished fourth in assists (66)…First-Team All-SEC
honoree scored at least 10 points in 29 of UT’s 35 games
while leading the Vols in scoring in 12 contests and eclipsing the 20-point
margin eight times…Ranked ninth in the SEC in scoring (16.1
ppg) and ninth in shooting percentage (.463) during league play despite being
regularly double-teamed; scored 20-plus in five SEC
contests…Joined Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer Bernard King as the
only Vols ever to earn SEC Play of the Year distinc-
tion as underclassmen…Averaged 12.3 points, 8.3 rebounds, 2.7
assists and 1.0 steal during Tennessee’s three-game SEC Tournament
run, highlighted by his first double-double of the season with 10 points and 11
rebounds in the quarterfinal win over Mississippi State
(3/9/18)…2016-17 (Freshman): SEC All-Freshman Team performer appeared in all 32
games, earning 29 starts…His 402 total points
rank sixth all-time among Tennessee freshmen, trailing Bernard King
(661), Allan Houston (609), Tobias Harris (521), Ernie Grunfeld (453) and Chris Lofton (410)…Was a part of the highest-scoring freshman class
in program history (1,140 points)…Finished the year
as Tennessee’s second-leading scorer (12.6 ppg) while pacing the squad in
rebounds (5.9 rpg) and blocked shots (1.9 bpg)…His 61
blocked shots on the year shattered Tennessee’s previous freshman record of 39
(C.J. Black, 1996-97) and ranked as the second-most
ever recorded in a single season by a Vol; his 1.9 bpg average ranked third
all-time for a single season and easily bested the previous
freshman record of 1.41 (C.J. Black, 1996-97)…Finished the year ranked 18th in
the SEC in rebounding (5.9 rpg) and fifth in blocked shots
(1.9 bpg, second among freshmen)…His 94 offensive rebounds were the most ever
by a Tennessee freshman and tied for the sixth-
most by a Vol in a single season…Led the Vols in scoring nine times, tallying
20 games in double figures and two 30-point outings.
His pair of 30-point performances made him just the third Vol in history to
record multiple 30-point games as a freshman (Bernard
King, Allan Houston)…Posted a team-high four double-doubles on the year, three
of which came over the Vols’ final five games…
Emerged as the Vols’ top performer in SEC play, averaging a team-high 14.2
points and 6.4 rebounds per game…Tied for the team lead
with eight drawn charges on the year…Led the Vols in rebounding (5.5 rpg) and
blocks (2.0 bpg)…Had an impressive showing in his
collegiate debut, logging eight points, two blocks and a team-high 10 rebounds
in the season-opener vs. Chattanooga (11/11/16); prior
to that game, the last Vol freshman to record 10 or more rebounds in his
Tennessee debut was C.J. Black vs. Morehead State (11/24/96). HIGH SCHOOL: Providence Day earned a final USA TODAY Sports Super 25 Expert
Ranking of No. 16…Powered Providence
Day to the 2016 North Carolina Independent Schools Athletic Association 3A
state championship; the Chargers finished the season
with a 30-4 record (a school record for victories) and won 20 straight games
before their season-ending loss at the national tourna-
ment…As a senior, he led Providence Day to four wins over teams that were
ranked in the USA TODAY national top-25 poll at some
point in the season…As a senior in 2015-16, Williams averaged 15.8 points,
10.1 rebounds, 4.0 assists, 3.0 blocks and 0.5 steals per game
en route to Associated Press All-State honors…Is one of only four players ever
to be named The Charlotte Observer’s Player of the
Year in back-to-back years (2015 and 2016), joining Queen City greats Ian
Miller, Anthony Morrow and Jason Parker…Was selected as
The Charlotte Observer’s Player of the Week 17 times during his final two high
school seasons (10 times as a junior, seven times as a
senior)…Produced an outstanding performance at the Hoodies House of Hope
Basketball Tournament in Charlotte, North Carolina, in
December 2015, earning tournament MVP honors after leading Providence Day to
the event’s national bracket championship…As a
junior in 2014-15, Williams averaged 18 points, 9.6 rebounds, 2.3 blocks and
2.7 assists per game. The Chargers posted a 25-5 record
and reached the 2015 NCISAA semifinals while playing one of the toughest
schedules in the Charlotte area…His junior-year honors
included being selected to the Associated Press All-State Team as well as being
named the Charlotte Observer’s 2015 Player of the
Year.