Thomas Williams Jr. is just a little more than halfway into his high school basketball career, but he already has surpassed the 500-rebound mark.
Williams Jr., a post player for Coahoma Early College High School, has 506 rebounds four games into his junior year.
He is averaging more than 10 rebounds per game as the Tigers are off to a 4-0 start for the 2018-19 season. He averaged 12.9 rebounds per game for his first two seasons with the Tigers.
“It’s a big accomplishment,” Williams Jr. said. “I’m going to try to get more. Hopefully, in the future, I will have more than that.”
Williams Jr. specifically said he has his sights set on finishing his career with at least 1,000.
Williams is 6 feet, 3 inches and is still growing. He said he hopes to be 6 feet, 9 inches by the time he graduates high school. He is 180 pounds and hopes to gain another 20 pounds.
Rebounding was not always Williams Jr.’s strength. He noticed he had a strong presence on the boards midway through his sophomore season.
When he played for Friars Point Elementary School and Coahoma County Junior High School, he thought he was a better blocker than rebounder.
“I always liked to block,” Williams Jr. said.
He has been playing basketball since he was 6 years old.
“I want to be something,” Williams Jr. said. “It’s my main focus. It will help me get out of here.”
The Tigers are young and Williams Jr. has been asked to step into a leadership role, but the stage is not too big for him.
“We’re trying to bring it together,” Williams Jr. said. “We’re used to playing with each other. We were used to playing with each other last year, but we’ve got a better chemistry, I think.”
Williams Jr. said the Tigers like to push the ball and are third in the nation in steals. His personal best game came in the season opener against Clarksdale High School when he had 20 points, 20 rebounds and five blocks.
Williams Jr., also an all-district football player, hopes to continue his basketball career in college. While he would like to play at a professional level, he will major in welding as a backup plan.
