Zion Williamson, Pelicans heading toward an ugly collision. Team's future in New Orleans could hang in the balance
The New Orleans Pelicans and Zion Williamson are like one of those old-school math problems: a train is leaving New Orleans’ Union Passenger Terminal and averaging 80 mph and a train is leaving Williamson’s local train station and averaging 100 mph. When will they meet?
I don’t have the precise answer (was never good at those story problems) but the two sides are headed for a collision that will impact the NBA.
Williamson has not played this season with growing speculation that he will not play in any of the Pelicans' 23 remaining games, and the situation grew louder and more concerning over All-Star Weekend.
First, new Pelicans guard CJ McCollum, acquired in a trade deadline deal on Feb. 8, divulged on Saturday that he had not yet spoken to Williamson. That was an alarming admission. McCollum just isn’t any 20-point-a-game scorer. He’s the president of the National Basketball Players Association. He has the respect of his peers and is influential.
Then, JJ Redick called Williamson a detached teammate, and Williamson eventually reached out to McCollum. But that was a reactionary move.
The interesting aspect of All-Star Weekend is the trove of information exchanged given the number of journalists, agents and NBA executives in attendance.
A pessimistic picture was painted with the overall theme emerging that Williamson is not long term for the Pelicans, and that his family’s outsized role in Williamson’s basketball affairs has not been productive for the relationship between Williamson and the franchise, a sentiment echoed by former NBA player Matt Barnes on ESPN’s NBA Today.
This is an intriguing NBA plot centered around Williamson’s future. Is it with the Pelicans or another NBA team? The sublots are compelling, too, with potential impact on other teams, the collective-bargaining agreement and the future of the franchise in New Orleans.
Before we get into that, let’s recap. The Pelicans drafted Williamson with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2019 draft, a boost to a franchise dealing with Anthony Davis’ desire for a trade. That ended up happening as Pelicans executive vice president of basketball operations David Griffin traded Davis to the Los Angeles Lakers for Brandon Ingram, Lonzo Ball, Josh Hart and three first-round picks.
But Williamson played in just 24 games his rookie season due to a right knee injury. He played 61 games last season and made the All-Star team. When he is on the court, he has been fantastic: 25.7 points and seven rebounds per game and 60.4% shooting from the field.
Keeping him on the court is an issue. Just before training camp, the team announced Williamson underwent surgery in the offseason to repair a fractured right metatarsal in his right foot, and both the team and Williamson hoped he would be ready for the start of the season. In a series of setbacks and treatments that have pushed a timeline to indefinite, Williamson hasn’t played and remains away from the team. The Times-Picayune in New Orleans reported Williamson may need another surgery.
Since a news release from the Pelicans on Jan. 5, there has been no further update on Williamson. And there are whispers that his family wants to control the narrative about this health amid distrust of the basketball operations staff, according to The Times-Picayune.
Forget about this season for a moment. What’s next? Williamson is up for a five-year, $181 million extension after this season. There are layers to this potential deal. Do the Pelicans want to invest that much in a player who has played just 85 games in almost three seasons? It’s possible. Remember, Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid played in just 31 games in his first three NBA seasons – missing every game his first two seasons. The Sixers signed him to a lucrative deal that gave the team some financial freedom if he didn’t meet certain incentives in the contract. It worked for the 76ers. Embiid is a leading MVP candidate this season.
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But if Williamson is intent on leaving, would the Pelicans be willing to trade him? Of course that comes with this problem: would another team be willing to trade assets for a player with his injury history?
From Williamson’s perspective, he doesn’t have to sign the extension. He could become a restricted free agent following the 2022-23 season, and if he was really intent on getting away from the Pelicans and choosing his next team, he could sign a qualifying offer for the 2023-24 season and become an unrestricted free agent.
Williamson has to consider his injury history, too. Wouldn’t it be wise to secure the extension and lock into a big chunk of money? Not many players who are offered max rookie extensions turn them down. Williamson could very well sign the deal, and if he’s truly unhappy in New Orleans, he could force his way out, just as Ben Simmons just did in Philadelphia. It gets ugly, but in this transparent day of player empowerment, the unseemly business of forcing a trade is not a deterrent even if the league office doesn’t always care for the process.
While NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said he wants players to be happy where they’re playing, he also noted there could be mechanisms added to the collective-bargaining agreement that address players asking for a trade multiple seasons before their deal expires.
And if Williamson were to leave, it would be another big name who bolted from the franchise. New Orleans is a great city, but is it a viable NBA city? The team’s lease with the arena ends in 2024, and while owner Gayle Benson and team executives have pledged to keep the team in New Orleans, if there’s one franchise that is the speculation of relocation, it’s New Orleans – the second-smallest TV market in the NBA with a declining population.
Griffin envisioned a promising future when he drafted Williamson and traded for Ingram, Ball, Hart and draft picks. That future is possible with a healthy Williamson alongside Ingram, McCollum, Devonte’ Graham, Jonas Valanciunas and Herbert Jones.
It’s just difficult at the moment to see that promise come to fruition.
Follow Jeff Zillgitt on Twitter @JeffZillgitt.