Baylor Guard Isaac Williams Emerging as 'Vocal Leader', Wanting to Bring Championships to Waco
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Bringing in seven new players is not usually the vision that teams have, but with the portal growing every year, Scott Drew has been forced to use it to try and have a rebound season. Although this is nothing new for guard Isaac Williams.
Speaking on The Sic 'Em Podcast, "Yeah, everybody was new. We knew we had a trip coming up, a long trip, a two-week trip, and we really got it going then." He was referring to the FISU World University Games, where the Bears quickly gelled, and made it to the finals, where they ultimately lost.
Despite the early start playing together, Baylor struggled after the first part of the season and missed the NCAA Tournament. The Bears lost Cameron Carr and Tounde Yessoufou, but Williams agreed to a new two-year deal and is expected to be a major part of the 2026-27 team.
Being A Leader
With a team that has added some really talented players, like Brett Decker from Liberty and rising sophomore guard Kayden Mingo. This team has the talent to be a good team in the Big 12, and Williams seems ready to do whatever it takes to win games.
He repeatedly mentioned that in some games last year where he did well, he still would've rather had the win. That's the mentality you want out of your veteran, more experienced players. Not worried about their stat lines, but focused on doing what it takes to get the win.
But one of the biggest things Williams talked about is how he is carrying himself this year, and how he feels the need to be a leader on this team. Saying "I've been on the team kind of like a vet, I feel like a little bit. So, just trying to lead the guys and just make it easier for them in the transition and just being more of a leader this year, being more vocal and leading us to the championship."
Another thing Williams talked about was his improvements in being defensively focused. He mentioned wanting to be the guy who stops the other team's best scorer from having good nights against Baylor. I think this is much needed after a horrific season where Baylor allowed over 74 points a game and ranked 94th in adjusted defense efficiency.
John Morris mentioned the team going to Canada to play international teams in scrimmages in order to grow and mold together this new lineup. Williams seemed excited to go to Canada and thinks it'll be a great opportunity to get all players tuned in and buy into what they want the season to look like.
Williams said, "Yeah, that helps a lot. We can all play five-on-five in practice all that, but there's nothing like a game and seeing how people react to things in the game, so that's going to help us a lot". The Bears will also be participating in the Players Era tournament, whose first game is November 24th.
Having this tournament against really talented schools, and overseas challenges in Canada, will surely get this fresh team ready, and familiar with each other as we get closer to the regular season
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Tyler is a writer for Baylor Bears On SI with a deep focus on football and basketball. Professional stat cruncher and high school athlete. Passionate NFL, college, and NBA fan. I love sports and want to put that passion into my writing.
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