The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
Williams’ athleticism making waves on internet
Athletic wing’s dunks have made quite a splash on Twitter
STORRS — When a video of the UConn men’s basketball team executing a well-orchestrated, acrobatic dunk at head coach Dan Hurley’s swimming pool went viral a couple of weeks ago, the cell-phone footage made it tough to make out each of the nine players involved.
But it was obvious who the player was that closed out the fun with a two-handed reverse jam. There was really only one player it could have been: Kwintin Williams, a.k.a. Jump, or @JumpManeBig, his Twitter handle.
Quite simply, Williams may be the most athletic, dynamic dunker to sport a UConn uniform, at least since Stanley Robinson — maybe ever.
“And with the social media following that ‘Jump’ has,” Hurley pointed out, “he understands, better than anyone, what gets some traction.”
Indeed, Williams has made quite a splash on Twitter and Instagram this summer. Another video taken at Hurley’s pool that shows Williams bounding off a diving board, flipping 360 degrees in mid-air while passing a ball through his legs, then firing the ball through the hoop with what may not have exactly been a dunk, but was just as impressive.
And there are other videos taken this summer at the Werth Family Champions Center showing the 6-foot-7, physical specimen throwing down windmills and other acrobatic dunks where his head is at rim-level.
With sporadic playing time last year, however, Williams hasn’t really had a chance to unleash his best stuff in a game yet. Perhaps that comes this season.
“I’m just getting ready for the new year,” Williams said at
UConn FanFest outside Rentschler Field on Saturday, “and, hopefully, I’ll apply them to the game — catch a few fast breaks. That’s what I’m looking for.”
He’ll get a chance to strut his stuff in a dunk contest at UConn’s First Night festivities on Oct. 12 at Gampel Pavilion. The Huskies didn’t have a First Night last season, Williams’ first with the program, due to renovations on Gampel’s roof.
“It’ll be my first (dunk contest),” he said. “I’ve got some stuff up my sleeve, definitely.”
You almost get the feeling that, somewhere in the back of his mind, the chance for a few breakaway dunks and to compete in a dunk contest helped sway Williams to return to UConn this season after Kevin Ollie was fired.
In truth, it was communication with his new coach that convinced Williams to return for what will be his second and final season with the Huskies.
“I definitely was waiting to have that conversation with Hurley and see where he thought I’d be at with the team, if he could use me,” Williams said. “We came to an agreement, and I’m really happy with the position I’m in right now with Hurley and my team.”
Williams was listed as a sophomore last season. But a re-assessment of his somewhat confusing high school and junior college transcripts, along with a talk with the new head coach, left everyone in agreement that this will be his final year.
“We decided that it would be best just to go ahead and try to do my best this year and then move on from here,” Williams said.
Don’t misinterpret his referring to his head coach as “Hurley” as a sign of disrespect. Williams, 24, is a friendly, good-natured young man who’s had a long, strange trip to D-1 ball. Originally from Anchorage, Alaska (where his mom, Bobbi, still lives; his dad lives in Oklahoma City), he played at Anchorage South High before heading to prep school at Planet Athlete Academy in Phoenix. In 2015, he enrolled at Pima CC, averaging 18 points and 8.3 rebounds per game. But he sat out the following season to concentrate on academics, beginning the year at Arizona Western CC before finishing his associate’s degree requirements at Pima.
In July, 2017, he accepted Kevin Ollie’s scholarship offer. But the speed of the D-I game was a struggle for Williams from the start, and his playing time was minimal, averaging 6.3 minutes in 18 games played. Even when he got into games and added some energy and rebounding, it didn’t seem to translate to more minutes. Ollie often hinted that Williams wasn’t performing well enough in practices.
“My first year was pretty tough,” Williams confessed. “It was disappointing, to say the least. But, I’m just ready for this year.”
It remains to be seen just how much opportunity Williams will get, and will largely come down to his ability to grasp Hurley’s pressure, man-to-man defensive philosophies.
“I like guys that play hard, and the thing that Kwintin does is he’s physical and he plays hard,” Hurley noted. “When you’re in Year 1 of rebuilding a program, the first thing you have to establish is how hard you’re gonna play, how physical you’re gonna be when you show up, just to gain the respect of the competition, the fanbase and yourselves. I would love Kwintin, in his last year, to be a guy that can come in and bring a little toughness and a little intensity and energy.”
UConn played more zone than usual last season — due, in part, to a short roster and frequent foul troubles — and Williams isn’t the only Husky who could have difficulty adjusting to more man-to-man.
“The transition is going to be a hard one,” Hurley pointed out. “But, if he picks it up, I would love to play him.”
Williams is ready for the challenge.
“I’m just gonna come out there and basically focus on finding my moments to get into the game, finding my place on the floor, wherever Hurley can use me,” he said. “From the conversations we’ve had, I can fit into the defensive scheme pretty well. I’m a lot more comfortable with the speed of the game.”
RIM RATTLINGS: Hurley said he was inside his new home, preparing food, when the viral pool video was being filmed.
“That was a Jalen Adams Production,” said the coach, adding that sophomore Sid Wilson was “kind of like the director.”
He said he wasn’t worried about any of his nine players, jumping into the pool at all angles, might be risking injury — with one exception.
“The only guy that was cringe-worthy was Alterique (Gilbert),” he said of the point guard, who’s missed most of the past two seasons with shoulder injuries. “I would not have allowed Al in the mix if I was out there.”
Despite the inevitable trolling (“That’s the best passing those guys have ever done,” etc.) on social Hurley liked the camaraderie.
“Stuff like that is important, to bring these guys together.”
⏩ James Bouknight, a talented combo guard out of the MacDuffie School in Massachusetts, concluded his official visit with UConn over the weekend and will likely make his decision on Tuesday.