NBA Playoffs 2012: Unsung Heroes Who Must Step Up

The teams that win in the playoffs aren't the ones with the star-filled rosters; they're the teams with deep, capable benches.

The stars only go so far. What happens if they get injured, like Andrew Bynum and Kendrick Perkins have in the past, thus essentially ending their respective teams' title dreams? What happens if they foul out in a tight spot?

Deep teams win championships, and in that regard, here are some unsung heroes who can step up in the postseason in order to ensure their teams advance:

Sean Williams, Boston Celtics

Boston's quest to replace Kendrick Perkins has been ongoing and largely unsuccessful, and while Williams certainly isn't meant to be a starter and fill those big shoes, he makes the Celtics a lot more dangerous up front than they were two weeks ago.

Williams' NBA career has been plagued by character issues, but perhaps he can turn over a new leaf with the Celtics. The former Boston College center was well on his way to breaking the NCAA shot-blocking record during his junior season, but was dismissed from the team for violations of team rules.

He declared for the draft and was the Nets' first-round selection in 2007, and though he experienced some success at first, he played in just 126 games in three seasons and spent a lot of time in the D-league.

Williams was released by the Nets in 2010, spent some time playing abroad before being picked up by Dallas in December 2011 and was released again in March.

In his first meaningful game with the Celtics against the Heat on Tuesday night, Williams registered five points, four rebounds and two blocks in 20 minutes.

The Celtics probably won't turn to Williams in big spots in the playoffs because he's only been on the team for a week—unless someone gets injured. But he provides some much-needed security for a team whose bench was very, very short not too long ago. 

Celtics head coach Doc Rivers told The Boston Globe's Gary Washburn that he background-checked Williams extensively before bringing him onto the team, and he's confident that with some coaching, Williams can be a factor: 

"

The one thing they all say is that he’s not just smart, he’s brilliant smart, but he does dumb things and we have to get him away from that, and [to] just being a ballplayer. That’s what he has to view himself as, and if he can do that, he has a chance. 

"

Finally, five years after being drafted, Williams could get the chance to be great.

Kyle Korver, Chicago Bulls

The Bulls are going to be in trouble if Derrick Rose can't recover completely for the playoffs. They've been able to keep winning without him, but they need his experience and, more importantly, his dominance in the playoffs.

And if he can't be as effective as the Bulls are accustomed to, Kyle Korver needs to step in and bring the offense.

Korver has been playing about 15-30 minutes off the bench for Chicago, and though he's not always consistent, he has the ability to be a deep-scoring threat. Against the Heat in mid-April, he went 5-for-6 from three-point land and helped power the Bulls to a 96-86 overtime win.

To expect that kind of production out of him on a nightly basis in the postseason would be unreasonable, but he can't disappear the way he did in last year's Eastern Conference finals. The Bulls need his offense off the bench, especially with a not-100-percent Rose.

James Harden, Oklahoma City Thunder

The favorite for the Sixth Man of the Year is going to be a force to be reckoned with if the Thunder meet the Lakers in the second round, particularly after being the unfortunate recipient of Ron Artest's ugly elbow-to-the-head on Sunday. But he'll have to keep the Thunder on track if they want to get that far.

In 31.4 minutes per game this season, Harden has averaged 16.8 points, 4.1 rebounds and 3.7 assists off the bench. He's been a huge factor in helping the Thunder clinch the second seed in the West, and as part of a very young team, he'll have to keep stepping up to provide that boost off the bench the Thunder need to advance throughout this year's playoffs.