Robert Williams III has been incredible during the Portland Trail Blazers playoff series against the San Antonio Spurs. A healthy Time Lord means trouble for the rest of the league, as he's arguably the best backup big man in the entire association. While that's great in the short-term for Portland's chances of pulling off the upset against San Antonio, it's also a double-edged sword.
Williams is on an expiring $13.3 million contract and is set to hit free agency soon. He's obviously made a strong case for Portland to keep him around long term, despite concerns about his injury history. But as he's proven his value in Portland, he's also raised his value to other teams around the league.
Robert Williams III is boosting his value at the worst possible time
Now, Portland may have to pay a premium to keep around an injury-prone backup center. Bill Simmons even suggested Williams' next contract could be a three-year, $50 million deal. That's become increasingly reasonable after seeing how important Williams has been in the postseason. But it's a steep price for Portland to pay, and it's bad timing as they look to retain and upgrade their existing young core, which still seems a piece or two away as currently constructed.
There are solutions to this looming problem, such as trading an expensive veteran like Jrue Holiday or, better yet, Jerami Grant. That also comes with a lot of uncertainty, both in finding a trade partner willing to take on Grant's salary and in Williams' willingness to return to Portland. It wouldn't be surprising if Williams were to reunite with the Boston Celtics, for instance, joining a legitimate contender team in need of frontcourt depth in which he has established prior connections.
Hopefully, that's not the case, and Portland can keep its valuable backup around. But they find themselves in a strange predicament as a team that has spent consecutive first-round picks at the center position and still needs Williams to stick around out of necessity rather than luxury.
That has to do not only with the uncertainty surrounding Yang Hansen's development, but also with the redundancy between Hansen and Donovan Clingan. Part of what makes Williams so valuable to Portland is his versatility. He provides Portland with another defensive anchor while simultaneously being much better equipped to defend out on the perimeter. He's also a constant lob threat for Portland's guards, as we've seen multiple times in this series with San Antonio.
The Blazers have always valued Williams highly, identifying him as a key piece in their initial Jrue Holiday trade with Boston. That's also why he's survived countless trade rumors since coming over to Portland.
But now, the Blazers' hands are tied, as Williams' value is increasing right as his contract is set to expire.
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