Amari Williams selected 46th overall by the Boston Celtics in the 2025 NBA Draft

Amari Williams is headed to New England as he officially begins his professional career.

During the second round of the 2025 NBA Draft on Thursday night in Brooklyn, NY, Williams was drafted with the 46th overall pick by the Boston Celtics. He becomes Kentucky’s second draft pick of the evening, going shortly after Koby Brea, who was taken by the Phoenix Suns with the 41st overall pick. After not producing any draft picks since becoming a head coach in 2015, Mark Pope can now say he’s coached two pros.

During the 2024-25 season with the Wildcats, Williams, who turns 24 in January, averaged 10.9 points, 8.5 rebounds, 3.2 assists, and 1.2 blocks in 22.8 minutes per outing. A five-year college player who spent his first four seasons at Drexel, he shot a career-high 56.1 percent from the field at UK while starting all 36 games played. His 115 assists set a Kentucky record for most ever by a seven-footer.

Boston, which has been offloading expensive contracts in the wake of Jayson Tatum‘s Achilles injury, could end up being an ideal landing spot for Williams. The Celtics expect to take a sizable step back in 2025-26 with Tatum on the mend, potentially opening up an opportunity for Williams to work his way into the lineup.

ESPN’s Jonathan Givony says Williams will sign a two-way contract with the franchise. The Orlando Magic previously held the rights to this pick before trading it to Boston.

From Nottingham, England, to Philly, to Lexington, Orlando, and now Boston. Go be great, Amari Williams. pic.twitter.com/u5E1lA1gcx

— Kentucky Men’s Basketball (@KentuckyMBB) June 27, 2025

Much like Brea, Williams also transferred to Kentucky for his fifth and final season after spending the previous four at a mid-major. While playing for the Wildcats, Williams became just the second-ever men’s player in SEC history to record at least 375 points, 300 rebounds, 100 assists, 40 blocks, and 20 steals in a single season (Auburn’s Johni Broome also did this in 2024-25). He finished with 10 double-doubles on the season, eight coming in SEC play, while also recording just the fourth triple-double in program history.

But before he made his way to Lexington, Williams was a member of Great Britain’s U20, U18, and U16 teams prior to graduating from Myerscough College in Preston, England. From there, he made his way to Drexel, where he came off the bench in 15 games as a true freshman in 2020-21. His season-high in minutes was only 11 in a win over Coppin State, but his breakout would quickly follow.

Williams won the first of his three CAA Defensive Player of the Year awards as a sophomore with the Dragons in 2021-22. He averaged 9.5 points and 7.3 rebounds in 20.6 minutes per outing while shooting 52.1 percent from the field. After coming off the bench early in the season, he was a full-time starter by conference play, ultimately making Third Team All-CAA.

His development didn’t stop there. Williams averaged career-highs with 13.7 points and 8.8 rebounds in 27.4 minutes per contest as a junior in 2022-23. Starting all 30 games, this was arguably his best season at Drexel. He was tabbed First Team All-CAA (along with winning his second CAA DPOY honor). Williams led his team in steals (41) and blocks (67) while logging nine double-doubles.

Although his numbers dipped slightly as a senior in 2023-24, Williams was still the most dominant big man in his conference. He posted per-game averages of 12.2 points, 7.8 rebounds, 1.9 assists, and 1.8 blocks in 22.9 minutes while starting all 32 games. On top of being named First Team All-CAA again, Williams became the first-ever three-time winner of the CAA Defensive Player of the Year.

Once his time at Drexel came to an end, Williams transferred to Kentucky and took his game to a new level. He became the fulcrum of Pope’s offense, acting as the offensive initiator and, at times, the primary ball handler. A lack of outside shooting kept him from being in the conversation as a first-round pick, but his playmaking, rebounding, physicality, and defense could all translate to the NBA.

“I had seen him at Drexel, but I didn’t think he would be what he became at Kentucky,” ESPN’s Jay Bilas told KSR last week. “And just did an excellent job, I thought, of anchoring both the offense and defense. Very good passing big guy, he can get the ball at the elbow and hit cutters, and so he’s got a lot of good traits as a big guy. Really good hands, left-handed, but had some excellent games, and he’s a good rebounder and a good offensive rebounder.”

Williams is certainly a unique prospect in this draft, but he has the skills to one day carve out a real role in the NBA.

Join KSR Plus! With a KSR Plus membership, you get access to bonus content and KSBoard, KSR’s message board, to chat with fellow Cats fans and get exclusive scoop.