Zion Williamson was one of the most hyped prospects coming into the NBA at just 19 years of age. He was drafted by the New Orleans Pelicans as the number one overall pick and at that time it seemed like he was going to take over the NBA and become the face of the league. However, various controversies off the court, his lack of availability, and the injuries that he’s suffered, has kept him away from achieving that next step to become a true superstar in the NBA.<\/p>
When Williamson is on the court, we’ve seen what he can do. The Duke product averages 24.7 points per game, 7.2 rebounds, and 4.3 assists on 58.9 percent shooting from the field and he has also averaged 1.0 steals and 0.6 blocks in his career. He has the talent to ball out, there’s no question about that. A couple of season ago, the Pelicans were the number one seed in the West when Williamson was healthy. While talent wise he has maintained his status as the 1st overall pick, it’s mostly the commitment towards playing ball is what is questioned at times.<\/p>
Zion is the only lottery pick from the 2019 NBA draft that has never played in a playoff game and it’s not because the Pelicans haven’t made it there. With Williamson in the team, the Pelicans have made the playoffs twice but he tends to be hurt whenever the postseason comes around. Williamson is one of the best players in the NBA but compared to what was expected from him, he has failed to deliver so far in his career.<\/p>
Stephen A. Smith has remained fairly critical of Zion Williamson throughout. He’s given him his flowers when he deserved it and remained critical when he was needed to be. Recently, Smith talked about Williamson suffering yet another injury and this is what he had to say;<\/p>
\n“I feel very very bad for the Pelicans and the city of New Orleans. Cause Zion Williamson is a star caliber talent. When he is one the court and healthy, he’s a monster.”<\/em> <\/strong>Smith continued, “The problem is, he’s rarely available. And as great as he is, the word ‘Bust’ comes to mind, not because of his talent, I’m only talking his availability. If you’re not available it doesn’t matter how great you are. And he’s almost never available. That is the situation.”<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>
\n“If you traded him right now, for example, do you realize you can’t ask for the phone for Zion. Well, you can ask but you ain’t gonna get it. Because he hasn’t been available. Nobody is going to give that up which leaves the Pelicans in the position, although they altered things contractually to their favor in some respects. You can’t expect but so much for him because his availability is what’s going to come into question.”<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>