Patrick Williams proud of turnaround after a sluggish start to the season

Things have been looking up for Patrick Williams.

It did not happen as quickly as fans of the team had hoped, but it was worth the wait. Patrick Williams had finally found his footing and is showing the potential Chicago Bulls' brass envisioned when they drafted him fourth overall in the 2020 NBA Draft. After a slow start to the season, in which he struggled to find his place within the team, Williams has put together a string of impressive performances that have him feeling proud and hopeful for what's to come.

Powered through the slump

For the record, Williams is averaging 9.8 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 1.1 blocks per game this season. He's also shooting 45% from beyond the arc and is near-automatic from the free-throw area, where he sinks 91% of his shots. However, those numbers do not represent Williams' hellacious start this season.

In Williams' first four outings this season, the Florida State product failed to score in double-figures in any of those games and totaled nine rebounds and two blocks. He also failed to issue a single assist during that stretch, leaving plenty of fans wondering if the Bulls had made a mistake in taking him so high in the draft.

But Williams never lost faith in himself and kept working hard to ensure it was only a matter of time before his game will catch up with all the hype he had received since being drafted.

"I think I started out in a slump, and I got myself out of that. Obviously, the coaching staff and talking to my teammates definitely helped. But I think I got myself out of that just mentally," Williams said.

"That's definitely hard to do in this league, especially when you don't know how you're going to play game-to-game. So I just tried to take it in my own hands and say if anybody is going to get myself out of this, it's going to be me."

Night and day

After averaging 7.1 points and 2.0 rebounds in October, Williams has substantially raised his level of play to 11.3 points and 5.0 rebounds in November. He says he is far from being a finished product and is still working on his game day in and out.

"I think I'm still figuring it out. But I'm 100 percent locked in on being the player that I want to be," added Williams.

"I always felt I had what it took to be a really good player in this league. But now I'm starting to feel like I have what it takes to be a star and a superstar in this league. I'm kind of trying to take that role on and build on it day-by-day."