Agent Kevin Bradbury from REP1 Sports informed ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski that the Boston Celtics and center Robert Williams had agreed to a four year, $54 million extension of their contracts.
Williams, 23 years old, will be among the NBA's top centers in terms of annual salary. This deal is a wager that Williams will fulfill the promise he showed during his first three years.
Williams' role has expanded each season. He made 13 starts in the 52 games last season. Williams averaged 8.0 points and 6.9 rebounds per game.
Williams is a career 72% field shooter and has shown glimpses of his potential to be an impact player on both ends of court. Williams is a skilled finisher and rim protector and has shown remarkable passing abilities.
He has been held back by nagging injuries, which have kept him from playing 113 games in his first three seasons. This is after he was the 27th overall selection out of Texas A&M in 2018.
The Celtics reached an agreement earlier this week with Marcus Smart, a guard, on a four year, $77 million extension. This is Brad Stevens' second attempt to make a mark on Boston's roster, having been promoted from coach to president of basketball operations following the season.
Boston also traded guard Josh Richardson and a first round pick for Al Horford. They signed Dennis Schroder and Enes Kanter, both guards, to one-year contracts.
Stevens reached a deal with New York Knicks in order to make Evan Fournier's departure a large trade exception. This gives Boston some flexibility going forward. By virtue of the Smart-Williams extensions, the Celtics will not have significant cap room next summer.
Stevens stated earlier this week that you should just create new avenues to expand your options. That's the bottom line.
"This is complicated from a numbers perspective, but I believe we have some flexibility, which is good. We have good players so we have a solid foundation. That's also exciting.
