Chicago Bulls pick up Patrick Williams' fourth-year option

This move shows the Bulls have a lot of faith in the third-year forward.

© Kamil Krzaczynski-USA TODAY Sports

The Chicago Bulls announced Wednesday that they had exercised the fourth-year option on Patrick Williams' contract. This development reinforces the organization's commitment to the 21-year-old forward as a key piece of the team's future.

Bounceback season

Much is expected from the Florida State product who the Bulls selected fourth overall during the 2020 Draft. After a promising rookie campaign that saw him show off his versatility en route to copping All-Rookie honors, Williams had an unfortunate sophomore season, suffering a wrist injury five games into the 2021-2022 season. He returned late in the season and ended up playing just a grand total of 17 matches.

Now in the pink of health, Williams has the precious opportunity to make an impact at the power forward — a position the Bulls do not have much depth at. Bulls head coach Billy Donovan offered his assessment of Williams at the team's recent media day.

"I think for Patrick, his focus and concentration has to be totally from the shoulders up. That's where it is," Donovan said.

Donovan added that Williams tends to get caught up in overthinking the game rather than just playing with instinct.

"I think Patrick can maybe overthink, he can over-analyze. And I think when he does get to that place, sometimes he can get to a place where maybe he's thinking too much and he's not being instinctive. I think that's something that he'll have to continue to grow and get better at."

Solid preseason showing

Williams had a solid outing during their preseason match-up against the New Orleans Pelicans earlier this week. He had five points, five rebounds, an assist, and two turnovers in 17 minutes of playing time. However, he could not contain Pelicans star Zion Williamson, who abused him inside and finished with 13 points on 4-of-6 shooting.

Still, Williams said he'll continue to stay aggressive and feed off the encouragement he regularly receives from teammates.

"Me just trying to do anything I can to help the team, guys are like 'Okay, to help us win you have to be more aggressive, you have to use everything that you have.' So I don't really see it as pressure, because it's something I know I can do, it's something I've done in the past. I just have to do it more consistently and I know that. I think that's part of the growth for sure," Williams said.