How Quion Williams Is OSU Basketball’s Lu Dort

STILLWATER — Quion Williams is the Cowboys’ fourth-leading scorer, but his impact on the Cowboys’ play is undeniable.

Williams recorded his second double-double of the season in Oklahoma State’s 86-70 victory against South Carolina State on Sunday, pouring in 16 points to go with 10 rebounds, but the numbers are just half the story when it comes to Williams. His energy and effort are what lead the way for the Cowboys.

Despite being 6-foot-5, Williams is the Pokes’ leading rebounder, averaging 6.3 a game. He is second on the team in assists, averaging 2.7 a game. He leads OSU with 1.4 steals a game. And on top of all that, he is shooting 55% from the field and 44% from 3-point range. Williams is there to plug any void the Cowboys need filled. He plays a lot like a guy down in Oklahoma City, as Mike Boynton noted after Sunday’s game.

“His rebounding and defense and energy has to be the thing that carries his game because he’s the one guy who can really impact the game that way for us,” Boynton said. “… Where it goes? I hope he can take it as far as the game allows him in terms of as high up because those guys are valuable at every level of basketball. I’m talking about the NBA, overseas, people are looking for guys like Quion because every team already has a (Jason) Tatum. Every team already has a Shai (Gilgeous-Alexander). Every team already has a (Kevin) Durant.

“They need guys like Q to fill those other gaps — like a Lu Dort, for instance, who can be an undersized guy who can guard multiple people, can be comfortable making an open shot, but you don’t necessarily have to run your offense through them to be effective.”

Luguentz Dort is an outstanding comp for Williams. The Thunder picked up Dort as an undrafted free agent in 2019 before Dort would work his way up from a two-way contract to a starter. He carved out that role by playing a similar style to Williams.

Let’s dive into the comparison, starting with some obvious benchmarks before diving a little deeper.

Measurables

Williams: 6-foot-5, 220 pounds
Dort: 6-foot-4, 220 pounds

As Prospects

Williams: Four-star recruit, No. 108 nationally in the 2022 class
Dort: Four-star recruit, No. 30 in the 2018 class

Dort was more highly regarded coming into the college game, but some of that has to do with Williams suffering a knee injury toward the end of his high school career.

Traditional Stats

Lu Dort the college player and Lu Dort in the NBA player are a little bit different. Dort was asked to shoulder more of a load in his one season at Arizona State, so we’ll differentiate Dort’s one year in college and his current season with the Thunder.

Offensive Efficiency

This is what Boynton was talking about when pointing to Williams’ production despite not having to draw up a ton of stuff for him. Williams has taken just 10.3% of the Cowboys’ field-goal attempts this season. Dort has taken just 8.7% of the Thunder’s shots this season. For comparison’s sake, Javon Small leads OSU, having taken 15.7% of the Cowboys’ shots. SGA has taken 22.3% of the Thunder’s shots. Dort led Arizona State in his one season in Tempe, shooting 21.4% of the Sun Devils’ shots.

But despite Williams and pro Dort not taking a ton of shots, they’re still producing. Dort is shooting 43% from 3-point range this season on 4.4 attempts per game. His attempts per game ranks 95th in the NBA. Williams is shooting 44% from 3 and is taking just 1.3 a game.

That could leave some to say, ‘Well, if they are shooting so well from 3, perhaps they should take more.’ That could be the case, but Dort averaged 7.7 3-point attempts a game two seasons ago and shot 33%. The point is Dort and Williams are more often than not taking open shots when they come to them instead of having the offense ran through them.

Defensive Prowess

Williams is the Cowboys’ best perimeter defender, and his length and athleticism give him the opportunity to become even better on that end of the floor. Per KenPom, Williams has a 2.6 in steal percentage (steals per defensive possessions). That’s comparable to Dort at Arizona State, who was at 2.7. That’s an area of Dort’s game that has transferred over perhaps the best to the NBA level, as he has gained a reputation as a high-level defender — putting opposing players in the Dorture Chamber.

Conclusion

Although Williams-to-Dort isn’t exactly a one-to-one conversion, it is easy to see why Boynton mentioned Dort as a comp for his sophomore guard. With the jump Williams has taken from his freshman to sophomore seasons, it’s also becoming evident that the roof might have to be raised again to contain Williams’ potential.