Toronto Raptors: 30 greatest players of all-time

28. Jerome Williams

WOOF WOOF, it’s J.Y.D. The Junkyard Dog. The undoubted star* of the Disney Channel original movie “Full-Court Miracle”. He also played basketball for the Toronto Raptors, and he was fan-favorite during his time in the North.

Jerome Williams was traded to Toronto in 2001 from the Pistons and even drove from Detroit to Toronto upon hearing the news of the trade. Talk about an eager beaver, if that doesn’t immediately endear you to the fans I don’t know what will.

Spending four seasons in Toronto, Williams earned a reputation for the gritty performances he’d give on the court.

A fairly undersized power forward at 6-foot-9, Williams was an agile and excellent defender who wouldn’t look out of place as a hustle-man in today’s game.

His third season with the Raptors will stand out as the best of his career, averaging 9.7 points per game and 9.2 rebounds per game, at his peak Williams even put up 30 points in a win against the Orlando Magic.

Williams was never meant to be a floor spacer or a stretch-forward, he went 1-17 from three in his 180 games for the Raptors.

He was barely meant to be an offensive outlet at all, his moniker was purely hard and aggressive defense and it worked. He was part of the famous 2001 Raptors team that won its first ever playoff series, a 3-2 series win against the New York Knicks, before losing in the second round in the grueling series against the Philadelphia 76ers.

Jerome Williams will have a place in the hearts of many Toronto Raptors fans, and also place on this list, for years to come.

* FYI, J.Y.D definitely wasn’t the star of the movie.