![\"Patrick](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/williams1113.jpg\")
File photo\nBulls<\/p>\n
File photo
\nBulls<\/p>\n
The Bulls have waited years for Patrick Williams<\/a> to take off, writes Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times<\/a>.<\/p>\n They\u2019ve cleared the runway, rebuilt the hangar, and even given him a five-year, $90 million contract. But entering his sixth season, Chicago is still waiting for liftoff.<\/p>\n Williams finished with eight points and three rebounds in Thursday\u2019s 119-112 preseason win over the Cavaliers<\/a>. Afterward, coach Billy Donovan<\/a> didn\u2019t sugarcoat it.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen you talk to Patrick, he\u2019s a guy that assumes responsibility,\u201d Donovan said, via Cowley<\/a>. \u201cThere\u2019s a certain amount of runway you end up having, and that runway kind of ends, and it\u2019s like, \u2018OK, you\u2019ve got to step up.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n To Williams\u2019 credit, he came into camp in better shape, looking leaner and more focused.<\/p>\n Still, Matas Buzelis<\/a> took his starting job last season, and Isaac Okoro<\/a> was brought in this summer to fill the defensive role<\/a> Williams once owned.<\/p>\n He was 11th in the rotation for the opener and seventh on Thursday, though Chicago was short-handed.<\/p>\n Donovan believes the physical tools are there \u2014 it\u2019s the consistent drive that remains the question.<\/p>\n \u201cHe can carve out a really good niche for himself,\u201d Donovan said. \u201cHe\u2019s really good defensively. But can he play with a consistent motor? That comes from within.\u201d<\/p>\n Rockets<\/p>\n If you ask Kendrick Perkins<\/a>, Houston\u2019s offense could be about to explode.<\/p>\n \u201cI believe they\u2019re gonna be the best offensive team in the league,\u201d Perkins said on ESPN\u2019s NBA Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n It\u2019s a bold statement, but the Rockets have made a strong early case.<\/p>\n In their first game with Kevin Durant<\/a> in uniform, they poured in 140 points and racked up 32 assists, 68 paint points and 13 dunks.<\/p>\n Durant scored 20 on 70 percent shooting in just 23 minutes, while young standouts Amen Thompson<\/a> and Alperen Sengun<\/a> flashed two-way potential.<\/p>\n Perkins even went a step further, calling Thompson a future challenger to Victor Wembanyama<\/a> as the league\u2019s best two-way player.<\/p>\n That\u2019s lofty talk for a team that finished middle of the pack offensively last season.<\/p>\n But if Durant stays healthy and Houston\u2019s young core continues to rise, the Rockets might just make Perkins look prophetic.<\/p>\n Nets<\/p>\n The Nets are calling it what it is, and it is a rebuild, writes Brian Lewis of the New York Post.<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re in a rebuilding year,\u201d owner Joe Tsai said during a recent event. \u201cWe spent all of our [2025] picks \u2014 we had five first-round picks this past summer. We have one pick in 2026, and we hope to get a good pick.\u201d<\/p>\n That\u2019s as clear a tank declaration as you\u2019ll hear from an owner. Brooklyn\u2019s roster features three teenagers and 14 players under 25.<\/p>\n Rookies Egor Demin<\/a>, Nolan Traore<\/a>, Drake Powell<\/a>, Ben Saraf<\/a> and Danny Wolf<\/a> will form the foundation.<\/p>\n Wolf, 21, said the team is embracing its youth.<\/p>\n \u201cWe know what we\u2019re playing for,\u201d he said, via Lewis<\/a>. \u201cIt\u2019s about proving ourselves right more than proving people wrong. We\u2019re the youngest team in the NBA, and we just want to keep learning and growing together.\u201d<\/p>\n The Nets face the Suns next in Macao, a fittingly far-flung location for a team just starting its long climb back to relevance.<\/p>\n Looking for the latest NBA Insider News & Rumors?<\/p>\n Be sure to follow Hoops Wire<\/a> on TWITTER<\/a>\u00a0and FACEBOOK<\/a>\u00a0for breaking NBA News and Rumors for all 30 teams!<\/p>\n