The Boston Celtics drafted Kentucky center Amari Williams in the second round of the 2025 NBA draft with the 46th overall selection.
After he was drafted, Amari Williams posted on X (formerly Twitter) to celebrate his entry into the NBA.
"Beyond blessed," he posted, along with a green heart emoji and a shamrock emoji.
Despite having a name traditionally associated with America, Williams is British—born and raised in England.
The center played at Drexel for four years before transferring over to the Wildcats for his fifth season in college basketball as a super senior.
At the age of 23, he played 36 games and averaged 10.9 points, 3.2 assists, and 8.5 rebounds during his final college basketball season.
The Celtics used one of their two second-round picks on Williams — both of which came from a trade with the Orlando Magic that sent the No. 32 pick to the Magic for picks 46 and 57.
Williams provides an athletic, rim-running center to the Celtics, who just traded away starting center Kristaps Porzingis.
Given Boston's position as a longshot for an NBA title, Williams could get an extended run in the rotation in order to see if he can provide an immediate impact.
As a 23-year-old prospect, he comes to the NBA older than the usual prospect, meaning he will need to show more polish than the teenager bursting onto the scene.
With Porzingis gone and Al Horford and Luke Kornet as free agents, Williams gives the Celtics additional depth since the team is still battling with some payroll issues.
After drafting Williams, vice president of basketball operations Mike Zarren offered insight into the selection.
“He’s been one of the best passing big men in college for a long time,” Zarren said. “He’s an elite rebounder, he’s a great guy, he had a wonderful career at Drexel, and then stepped it up another level at Kentucky.
“When you meet him, you’ll see he’s got just an enormous, enormous wingspan. And as you’ll see on the court, if you haven’t seen already, he’s got incredible vision. And those things are just key abilities in the modern NBA.”
Beyond blessed! 💚☘️ https://t.co/AfupAwgTIs
— Amari Williams (@amxriwillixms) June 27, 2025
