2013 small forward Troy Williams has transferred to Oak Hill Academy, one of the top high school basketball programs in the nation for his senior season. Williams will team with North Carolina commit point guard Nate Britt and will look to re-establish himself as a top prospect in the class. Williams was ranked as high as #7 in the 2013 class before a disappointing 2012 evaluation period that saw him drop to #42 in the class. Troy’s game was picked apart by scouts who criticized his jump shot and offensive play making ability, Troy also struggled early in AAU play furthering the criticism.
July 13, 2012;Alexandria, VA USA;China forward GAO Shang (12) shoots the ball over USA East forward Troy Williams (9) during the Nike Global Challenge at Episcopal High School. Mandatory Credit: Evan Habeeb-US PRESSWIRE
Some of the criticism and negativity surrounding Troy has been brought on by his high profile, back and forth recruiting process. For anyone not paying attention this summer, here’s a summary of the Williams recruiting drama.  Troy cut his list down to Kentucky and UNC in late April and announced via his twitter account that he would declare on May 1st between the two schools. He then tweeted the next day that he didn’t wake up feeling comfortable with the decision that day and would announce at a later date. It was then revealed that Williams was going to commit to Kentucky before he changed his mind. He then added four schools to his list but stated that UNC and UK were above all else. A statement he would retract just a couple weeks later when he then expressed a strong desire to play with current high school teammate Anthony Carter.
Troy will now play against the top talent in the nation in a grueling national schedule that will either force him to step up his game to new levels, or expose his weaknesses. While critique of Troy’s game is high, it’s easy to forget just how good this kid really is. A long 6-6, Williams is a terrific rebounder who puts a lot of emphasis on being one of the best off the boards on the court. He also is excellent at playing the passing lanes on the defensive end. In transition he’s fantastic and he runs the court as good as almost anyone in the country. In other words, he’s ideal for Carolinas high tempo offense and would fit right in, in Chapel Hill.
I believe in Troy Williams personally, I think he’s closer to the player who was ranked as a top 10 prospect than the one who dropped all the way down into the 40’s and lost his 5th star. Sometimes it’s hard to remember these prospects are just kids, Troy is barley old enough to drive yet we’ve all known his name for many years now due to the media attention the top prep players receive these days.
Players sometimes play to their competition and I think Troy is one of those players. He may have acted a little immature in his recruiting process but can we really blame him for that? I say no, think about how many things you would do differently at that age. I see big things for Troy Williams this year and personally I think playing with Nate Britt might just bring him to Chapel Hill after all. UNC is still going hard after Williams who had an in home visit with the Heels today.