Raptors: Top 5 point guards in franchise history
By Avishai Sol
No. 4: Alvin Williams
It’s tough to measure what Williams meant to the city because so much of his value is intangible. His raw stats are pretty underwhelming. During his years with the Raptors, he averaged 10 points, four assists, and 1.3 steals per game while shooting 42 percent from the field and 31 percent from three.
Still, the fans loved him.
He was the kind of player who always seemed to be bigger than his stats. Struggling with lower leg injuries for his entire career, Williams would labor through the pain just so he could dive on the ground for loose balls. He was a fighter, whatever his limitations.
Part of why we loved Williams was because he was such a departure from our star of the day, Vince Carter. While Vince, a better player, was a superstar, Williams did a lot of the dirty work that goes unnoticed.
Williams would fight and claw for every possession, and that’s really the theme of all great Raptors point guards. The John Wall/Derrick Rose mega-stars that light up social media aren’t gravitating here. What will work, however, is gutting things out on the defensive end with effort and hustle on both ends.
Alvin would sacrifice. He’d run himself ragged every night for us, and that’s why his measly stats and average career will be remembered by fondly Raptors fans forever.