Back in 2011, there was hope Ohio State had landed its first legitimate true center since the departure of Greg Oden following the 2006-07 season when Thad Matta reeled in Amir Williams, a four-star McDonald's All-American out of Michigan.
Williams was ranked the 10th-best center prospect in the land by Rivals with ratings of "good" in the categories of shooting, rebounding, strength and handle while his passing skills were still "developing".
Nearly four years later, Williams' career numbers stand at 4.6 points and 4.1 rebounds per game though his junior year saw career bests of 7.8 points and 5.8. Through eight games as a senior, he stands at 7.4 points and 5.4 boards per contest.
Due to numbers that don't exactly jump off the page, all-too-brief brief flashes of inspired play, and what is often perceived as, at worst, an apathetic approach to the game or at best a lackadaisical one, Williams has drawn the ire of the fanbase virtually since his arrival in Columbus.
This year, for the many fans who gave up on Amir long ago, the hope was that Temple transfer Anthony Lee would provide Matta a better option or at least push Williams to maximize his potential with Trey McDonald on hand in a reserve role to provide toughness and defense.
In reality, through eight games, Williams remains the best option in the middle and there's no reason to believe he won't continue to be as the competition ratchets up in league play.
| PLAYER | MPG | PPG | PPM | ORTG | TS% | RPG | RPM | ORB% | DRB% | DRTG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WILLIAMS | 17.7 | 7.8 | .44 | 130.8 | 72.3 | 5.7 | .32 | 15.9 | 19.9 | 75.0 |
| LEE | 13.4 | 5.0 | .37 | 112.1 | 59.7 | 2.4 | .18 | 10.7 | 16.5 | 86.9 |
| MCDONALD | 11.6 | 4.3 | .37 | 121.3 | 66.5 | 4.7 | .41 | 18.5 | 25.9 | 78.1 |
So far this season, as clear as it is to Matta that Amir is his best center, it's also evident the kid drives his head coach nuts. I can recall a few times already this year in which Matta has quickly yanked Williams just a minute or two into a half because of a mental mistake or lack of hustle.
Despite those intensely frustrating instances, the various metrics back Williams as the guy who needs to log the most minutes in the post. To date, he's leading his fellow pivots in minutes, points per game, points per minute, offensive rating (estimate of points produced per 100 possessions), true shooting percentage (shooting efficiency measurement taking into account FG, 3FG and FT attempts), rebounds per game and defensive rating (estimate of points allowed per 100 possessions).
Matta sees Williams as his best defensive option against teams with legit size as evidenced by Amir's season-high 22 minutes against Louisville yielding six points, five boards, two blocks and two steals against just one turnover while Lee and McDonald combined to log only 18 minutes generating four points with zero blocks, rebounds or steals.
Thus far, Williams' minutes are down to last year but that is the result of shoddy competition and a bruised knee that forced him to miss a game in late November. The reduced minutes could be good news as the calendar turns and Williams is expected to log 20-25 minutes per game as the anchor of Ohio State's 2-2-1 zone defense.
McDonald, a 6'8" senior out of Battle Creek, Michigan remains easy to root for because of his motor and at this stage of his Ohio State career, he is what he is which is a serviceable backup especially on defense. Through eight games, he actually leads the trio of bigs in rebounds per minute though it should be noted 37% of his season rebounding total (14) came against Sacred Heart. If you do throw that out the window, his .32 rebounds per minute would still be tied with Amir.
Offensively, McDonald is clearly limited – he's never reached double figures as a Buckeye – but as an experienced and studious player, he's smart enough to typically play within himself, allowing for a solid field goal percentage even though his points per game will never dazzle.
Though he hasn't done anything head turning to this point, the hope is Lee can still find his footing and put up numbers rivaling some of his efforts last season against ranked teams and more seriously challenge for minutes at the five spot.
For a Temple team that went 9-21 overall, Lee put up 14 points and 11 boards against then 19th-ranked Cincinnati, nine and nine against #24 Memphis, 12 and 10 against #9 Villanova and 14 points and three rebounds against then #13 Louisville.
In scarlet and gray, Lee has reached double figures just once with 13 points in the season opener against Umass Lowell. Defensively, his benchmark is the nine boards posted in Ohio State's last outing against High Point.
Lee looks to have the most polished offensive game of the trio but he's more of a four than a five when you look at his lean frame, how it projects in a usually rugged B1G and the reality he would rather step out and face up versus post up.
Defensively, he's the least enticing option of the group especially with Ohio State's new 2-2-1 zone calling for the last line of defense to be able to alter shots, box out significant space and step up and challenge cutters. That said, Lee could still be finding his way and the next two weeks will be crucial for him if he wants to challenge for more minutes when conference play begins.
For now and the foreseeable future however, like it or not, Amir Williams is the clear cut best option for Ohio State in the pivot.
