Trail Blazers' Robert Williams: Strong showing in season debut

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Williams (hamstring) tallied 13 points (4-5 FG, 1-1 3Pt, 4-4 FT), three rebounds, two assists, two steals and one block across 17 minutes in Friday's 127-102 loss to the Timberwolves.

After completing his recovery from a hamstring strain that sidelined him for Portland's first eight games of the season, Williams was cleared to play ahead of Monday's game against the Pelicans, but he didn't see any minutes in that contest. He again went unused in Thursday's 118-105 loss to the Spurs, but head coach Chauncey Billups opened up room in the rotation for Williams on the second leg of the back-to-back set. Though Williams is best suited for playing center, he saw some time at power forward Friday alongside rookie center Donovan Clingan. Williams produced well during his time on the court and even knocked down the first three-pointer of his career, which could inspire Billups to keep deploying Williams alongside either Clingan or starting center Deandre Ayton. While Williams has been a strong per-minute performer throughout his career, the Trail Blazers could look to keep him under 20 minutes in most games in an effort to manage his health after injuries have limited him to just 41 total appearances over the prior two seasons.