Jazz Mailbag: Should Jazz Fans Be Concerned About Cody Williams?
Dec 17, 2024, 1:24 PM | Updated: 3:13 pm
Utah Jazz forward Cody Williams (5) looks to drive the ball while guarded by the Sacramento Kings (Credit: Isaac Hale, Deseret News)
(Credit: Isaac Hale, Deseret News)
SALT LAKE CITY – Welcome to the Utah Jazz mailbag where this week we examine whether fans should be concerned about the beginning of Cody Williams’s career.
Each week we will send out a prompt on X and BlueSky asking for the questions you have about the Jazz.
Then, we’ll respond to as many as we can in that week’s mailbag.
Jazz Mailbag: Are Cody Williams Numbers Cause For Concern?
Jazz fans seem to be freaking out over Cody Williams not so great stats in G-League. Do you have any concerns with his play with Stars? Or still too early for concerns with Cody do you feel?
— JazzNation (@JazzNationNews) December 16, 2024
Question: Jazz fans seem to be freaking out over Cody Williams not so great stats in G-League. Do you have any concerns with his play with Stars? Or still too early for concerns with Cody do you feel?
Answer: I will admit that the start of Cody Williams’s career has been less fruitful than I had anticipated, especially with the amount of minutes the rookie was given early in the season.
After his 11 point, five rebound, four assist game in Chicago, I thought the Colorado product would find a way to offer the Jazz some production most nights for the rest of the season.
However, Williams went scoreless in six of his next nine outings, and his rebounding and assist numbers both dropped.
The rookie was then assigned to the G League where he averaged 13.0 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 1.7 assists while shooting 30 percent from the floor, 21 percent from three, and 68 percent from the free throw line.
It’s fair to say statistically, his numbers have been underwhelming.
Cody Williams TO THE RACK! 💥
The 2024 NBA lottery pick is getting busy for the @slcstars on ESPN+ pic.twitter.com/R6MJl6Jm9s
— NBA G League (@nbagleague) December 11, 2024
Now, it’s worth noting that Williams has been asked to do two radically different things with the Jazz and the Salt Lake City Stars, and it’s part of the reason he was sent to the G League in the first place.
Williams had quickly assumed the role of a traditional 3-and-D wing after moving into the starting lineup early in the year, but the Jazz wanted to give him more opportunities with the ball in his hands.
With the Stars, Williams was doing far more dribble-drive shot creation than he did in the NBA, and showed a knack for getting into the paint, even if his shots weren’t falling.
“Cody is getting better. The game that I was at, I thought he played a good game, I just think he didn’t shoot the ball great, and so I leave encouraged,” Jazz coach Will Hardy said.
“The making and missing of shots is not everything for these guys where they are in their careers, and so we try to stay focused on that while also recognizing that they’re human and that they want to make every shot, and if they don’t, they feel bad about themselves, so we have to help them keep that perspective.”
NBA first round pick Cody Williams has 12 PTS in just 13 MIN for the @slcstars! 🤩
Watch him NOW on ESPN+ pic.twitter.com/6fjq6sMCY8
— NBA G League (@nbagleague) December 5, 2024
One key issue Hardy hit on in his comment was the overvaluation of shot-making in young players.
Too often, we judge a player on whether shots fell over a small sample size and then try to draw big conclusions from those results.
All the while, we ignore what else they may have added to their game that will be far more obvious once the shots do start to fall.
A good example of this is Keyonte George who throughout summer and the early part of the season showed improvement attacking the rim with his left hand.
However, because his three-point shots weren’t falling, the subtle improvements in his game were overshadowed.
Now that he’s making three-point shots at a higher rate, he’s getting more opportunities to attack closeouts, and the improvement with his left hand has made finishing at the rim much easier.
key’s moving quick 🔑🏎️#TakeNote pic.twitter.com/TJfSrSjxWb
— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) December 9, 2024
So, I believe Hardy when he says he has seen growth in Williams’s play in the G League, even if his shots have yet to fall.
As the rookie adds weight (which may not happen this year) and his shooting rounds into shape, his improvement elsewhere will be more apparent.
But be patient, it might not be obvious this season.
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Ben Anderson is the Utah Jazz insider for KSL Sports and the co-host of Jake and Ben from 10-12p with Jake Scott on 97.5 The KSL Sports Zone. Find Ben on Twitter at @BensHoops, on Instagram @BensHoops, or on BlueSky.
