Zion Williamson

Southwest Notes: McCollum, Ingram, Zion, Schröder, Doncic

February 28th, 2022 at 11:44am CST by Luke Adams

The Pelicans may be missing former No. 1 overall pick Zion Williamson, but CJ McCollum and star forward Brandon Ingram have been developing an impressive rapport in the weeks since McCollum arrived from Portland, writes Christian Clark of NOLA.com.

“Those two guys set the tone for us,” Pelicans head coach Willie Green said after Sunday’s blowout win over the Lakers. “When they are playing like that and playing off of each other and making the simple plays, it’s beautiful basketball to watch.”

McCollum, who went out to dinner with Ingram and Green last week, tells Mark Medina of NBA.com that he advised Ingram “to be the most aggressive version of himself and not worry about me.”

“He’s been great. We can all see what he’s doing on the floor and his ability to score and to free up other guys,” Green said of the newly-acquired guard. “Now teams can’t load up as much on Brandon and can’t double Jonas [Valanciunas] as much when he’s on the floor.”

Here’s more from around the Southwest:

After defending Williamson last week to reporters, McCollum stressed in his conversation with Medina that he just wants to support his new Pelicans teammate while he recovers from his foot surgery and wasn’t bothered by the fact that it took them a couple weeks to touch base. “I just want to be there for him and be someone to lean on who has gone through injuries and doubt and anxiety and all of the things that are associated with being removed from the team due to injury,” McCollum said. “He’s a really young, talented player that has got a lot on his plate right now. I think it’s important for him to focus on the process and on the rehab. The rest of the things will handle itself. But when he gets back, we’ll hit the ground running. That’s a guy that changes any franchise and their trajectory.”
Rockets guard Dennis Schröder, who had to settle for a one-year, $5.9MM contract in free agency last summer, has hired new representation, signing with Priority Sports, per Ian Begley of SNY.tv (Twitter link). Schröder is averaging a career-high 7.8 assists per game in his first five appearances with Houston, but has shot the ball erratically, making just 34.5% of his attempts from the floor, including 21.7% of his three-pointers.
After picking up his 13th technical foul of the season on Sunday, Mavericks star Luka Doncic is now tied for the league lead and is just three technicals shy of earning a one-game suspension, tweets Tim MacMahon of ESPN. As MacMahon notes, with Dallas in the midst of a playoff race, Doncic has vowed that won’t happen.

Western Notes: Gobert, Jazz, Edwards, Wolves, Williamson

February 27th, 2022 at 10:01pm CST by JD Shaw

Jazz center Rudy Gobert continues to dominate this season despite facing criticism, as relayed by NBA.com. Gobert, one of the league’s top rim-protectors, is averaging 15.6 points and 14.8 rebounds per game on a career-best 72% shooting.

“I’m just gonna keep trying to be the best Rudy I can be, on and off the court. … And for my team,” Gobert said. “The more these people try to discredit what I do or what my team does, it just means we’re doing something right.”

Gobert is also averaging 2.3 blocks per game, making it eighth straight seasons of averaging over two blocks. His impressive two-way play is a key reason why Utah ranks fourth in the West at 38-22.

Here are some other notes from the Western Conference:

The Jazz are bouncing back after dealing with a difficult January, as relayed in a separate NBA.com story. Utah is 8-1 this month, which includes a 118-114 road victory over the Suns on Sunday. The team owns the sixth-best record in the league.
The Timberwolves have to find a way to improve their offense, Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic writes. One of the team’s recent problems has been Anthony Edwards, who’s currently in a slump. Minnesota has scored 102, 119 and 91 points in its last three games. “We’ve kind of regressed with that first unit, and we just have to get back to playing through our early concepts,” head coach Chris Finch said. “That’s what we’ve gone away from.”
Christian Clark, Scott Kushner and Rod Walker of NOLA.com debate whether Pelicans star Zion Williamson will play another game with the organization. Williamson hasn’t played this season (foot surgery rehab) and remains away from the team. He could undergo a second procedure at some point, as we previously relayed.

Atlantic Notes: Knicks, Williamson, Sims, Anunoby, Morey, Harden

February 26th, 2022 at 9:40am CST by Dana Gauruder

The speculation over Zion Williamson‘s future with New Orleans has Knicks fans dreaming of acquiring the 2019 top pick. Williamson’s former coach and current TV analyst Stan Van Gundy scoffs at the notion that big-name players want to go to New York, Ethan Sears of the New York Post relays.

“No matter how many times people have proven they don’t want to play for the Knicks, the Knicks have this idea that everybody in the league wants to play for the Knicks,” Van Gundy said on the Dan Le Batard Show. “Now, what is the last time it actually happened that somebody came and tried to get their way to New York? Like, never in the last 20 years? But still the Knicks and Knicks fans think everybody is trying to get to the Knicks. I’m not saying [Zion] won’t end up there — there’s all kinds of ways people can end up somewhere — but this idea that everybody wants to be a New York Knick, I mean if that were the case, then they wouldn’t be as bad as they’ve been for the last 20 years.”

We have more from the Atlantic Division:

Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau played rookie center Jericho Sims ahead of Nerlens Noel and Taj Gibson on Friday, which may signal a shift in philosophy, Marc Berman of the New York Post writes. Thibodeau typically relies on veterans, so it was unusual to see a late second-round pick get 18 minutes of playing time. “We’ll see how it unfolds. Taj did a good job for us,” Thibodeau said. “Nerlens did a good job for us. Jericho, the opportunities that he’s had, he’s played well. So just let him get in there; let him gain some more experience.”
Raptors forward OG Anunoby will get a second opinion on his injured finger, Josh Lewenberg of TSN Sports tweets. An X-ray revealed that Anunoby had a fractured right ring finger and would miss some games. The trip to the specialist will presumably clarify a recovery timeline.
James Harden, who made his Sixers debut on Friday, wanted to play with Joel Embiid “for a long time,” president of basketball operations Daryl Morey told ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne. “James is a basketball genius,” Morey said. “And he’s been wanting to play with Joel for a long time. I think he’s always thought Joel was, like, the perfect guy to pair with him.”

Pelicans Notes: McCollum, Zion, Griffin, Nance, Hart

February 25th, 2022 at 8:40am CST by Luke Adams

Amid persistent speculation about whether Zion Williamson is happy in New Orleans, veteran Pelicans guard CJ McCollum came to his teammate’s defense on Thursday, essentially telling reporters to back off while the former No. 1 overall pick recovers from a foot injury.

“Leave the young fella alone, man,” McCollum said, per Christian Clark of NOLA.com. “He’s trying to rehab in peace. Trying to get himself ready to come back. We spoke, and I’ll speak to him later this week or next and just catch up with him. He’s a very talented player. He’s going through a lot. You guys are putting him on the spot on the daily. I think he’s just trying to recover on his own time and focus on his rehab.”

McCollum pointed out on Thursday that he has dealt with multiple foot injuries in his own career, including a hairline fracture that sidelined him for a good chunk of the 2020/21 season. He said he knows what Williamson is going through during his long rehab process.

“You feel disconnected. You feel away,” McCollum said. “It’s tough mentally and physically. I know it’s frustrating.”

Here’s more on the Pelicans:

In a separate story for NOLA.com, Clark takes a closer look at the apparent tension between Williamson and the Pelicans, revisiting some points he made in a September report and sharing some new details. According to Clark, Williamson and his camp seem to have a “lack of trust” in Pelicans head of basketball operations David Griffin. Clark also says that Zion’s stepfather Lee Anderson has “maintained a great deal of control” over the young forward’s career since he was drafted and that some people who knew Williamson and his family before he reached the NBA have discussed whether Anderson has Zion’s best interests at heart.
Rod Walker of NOLA.com believes that a lack of communication, both publicly and privately, has exacerbated the divide between Williamson and the Pelicans, arguing that even a brief social media post from Zion reiterating that he wants to be in New Orleans would go a long way toward silencing the noise.
Larry Nance Jr. and Josh Hart are good friends and would’ve loved the chance to play on the same team rather than being traded for one another, tweets Andrew Lopez of ESPN. They made the most of the situation by agreeing to temporarily swap houses when Nance was dealt to New Orleans and Hart was sent to Portland.
Nance referred to his recent knee surgery as a minor procedure and said he hopes to be back on the floor soon, according to Lopez. It has been two weeks since Nance went under the knife — reports at the time suggested it would take the forward about six weeks to recover, so he could return in a month or so.

Southeast Notes: Hampton, Williamson, Smart, Collins

February 24th, 2022 at 7:57pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Magic guard R.J. Hampton is expected to be in uniform on Friday, Dan Savage of the team’s website reports. Hampton missed the last 14 games due to an MCL sprain and bone bruise in his left knee. He got through back-to-back full contact practices on Wednesday and Thursday without any issues.

“It felt very good to get back on the court with the guys,” Hampton said. “I’ve missed doing what I love for the last month.”

We have more from the Southeast Division:

The Hawks should go all-in to acquire Zion Williamson this offseason if the Pelicans make him available and the medical records come back clean, Chris Kirschner of The Athletic argues. Despite some red flags regarding Williamson, he can be as dominant as Joel Embiid if he overcomes his injury and conditioning issues, says Kirschner, citing Williamson’s stats and advanced metrics from last season.
Javonte Smart‘s two-way contract with the Heat is a two-year deal, Keith Smith of Spotrac tweets. The rookie guard signed with Miami on February 15th.
Hawks forward John Collins missed Thursday’s game due to a right foot strain, Sarah Spencer of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution tweets. Collins hasn’t played since February 11. He’s averaging 16.8 PPG and 7.9 RPG after signing a five-year, $125MM contract.

Pelicans Notes: Zion, Silence, Distant, Failings

February 23rd, 2022 at 9:25pm CST by Rory Maher

After J.J. Redick‘s condemnation of Zion Williamson‘s behavior toward new Pelicans teammate CJ McCollum, McCollum stated that Williamson finally reached out and the two spoke, but Williamson’s public silence is a willful choice not to quiet the speculation surrounding the franchise, Scott Kushner of NOLA.com opines.

A year ago, Williamson was a first-time All-Star and one of the league’s must-see young players. Yet on Monday, the Pelicans removed Williamson from marketing materials to season-ticket holders for next season, instead focusing on Brandon Ingram, Jonas Valanciunas and McCollum, as Kushner writes.

According to Kushner, the decision to omit Williamson isn’t an indication that New Orleans is interested in trading the young star. It’s an acknowledgement that the Pelicans don’t know when he’ll return to the court, and a way to shield themselves from criticism of false advertising.

It’s a stark contrast to the Media Day comments made by executive VP of basketball operations David Griffin, who suggested at the time that Williamson would be ready for the regular season. Williamson also expressed optimism about his return back then, but he still hasn’t played a game this season and has been in Oregon since early January while rehabbing his injured foot.

Here’s more on the Williamson situation:

Appearing on SportsCenter, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst (video link) states the Pelicans and Williamson are “distant, both literally and figuratively.” Since Zion left the team to rehab elsewhere, the Pelicans haven’t released an update on his health status, and his camp has been very cautious in limiting information, per Windhorst. Windhorst thinks the Pelicans might offer Williamson a rookie scale scale extension this summer similar to the one Joel Embiid received, with some of the contract being non-guaranteed and based around injury protection.
Similar to Kushner, William Guillory of The Athletic writes that if Williamson wants the outside noise to stop, his actions need to start backing up his words. Williamson says he loves the city of New Orleans, but then disappears for periods of time, leaving a shroud of mystery. Williamson’s last conversation with the media came in late September, during Media Day. Prior to Zion’s departure to Oregon for rehab, several members of the organization — over the course of three-plus months — tried to convince him to make public statements about his recovery process, but Williamson chose to remain silent, Guillory reports. It’s gotten to the point that Pelicans fans don’t trust what Williamson has to say anymore, according to Guillory.
Tom Ziller of Substack thinks the Pelicans bear plenty of blame for how events have transpired with Williamson, noting that there has been a rotating cast of three head coaches and several veteran teammates in his two-plus seasons with the team, creating instability for the young star. Lonzo Ball was reportedly Williamson’s best friend on the team and the two had synergy on the court, but the Pelicans opted to not re-sign him. Williamson clearly isn’t doing his job, Ziller states, but others in New Orleans are culpable as well.

Southwest Notes: McCollum, Zion, Doncic, Brunson, Murray

February 22nd, 2022 at 3:06pm CST by Luke Adams

After revealing in a TNT interview on Saturday that he hadn’t been in contact at all with Zion Williamson since being traded to New Orleans, Pelicans guard CJ McCollum tells Malika Andrews of ESPN (Twitter link) that the star forward has since reached out to him and the two have spoken.

Williamson has been away from the Pelicans as he rehabs a foot injury that has sidelined him for the entire season, but it was still surprising that he and McCollum hadn’t had any communication nearly two weeks after New Orleans agreed to trade for the standout guard.

Current ESPN analyst and former Pelicans guard J.J. Redick criticized Williamson today for what he called a “complete lack of investment” in the team, describing him as a “detached teammate.” However, while the incident may fuel more speculation about Zion’s commitment to the Pels, there has been no indication that people within the organization viewed it as a serious problem.

Here’s more from around the Southwest:

Appearing on 1310 The Ticket in Dallas on Tuesday, Mavericks owner Mark Cuban said he thinks Luka Doncic was “humbled a little bit” by criticism at the start of this season about his conditioning, as Tim MacMahon of ESPN relays. “I think he didn’t like being called out for his weight and other things, and it finally clicked that there’s a level of discipline that’s required,” Cuban said, adding that Doncic has been “unstoppable” since getting in better shape. “All athletes at his level go through it at some level, where things are just easy and you’re always used to being the best and you’re always used to getting all the accolades. Then when something doesn’t go according to expected, it makes you reconsider.”
Keith Smith of Spotrac examines what an offseason contract for Mavericks guard Jalen Brunson might look like, noting that Brunson isn’t a legitimate candidate for a maximum-salary contract, but should get more than what Dallas can currently offer in an extension ($55.6MM over four years).
Having made his first All-Star team this season, Spurs guard Dejounte Murray is already eager to prove he can do it again, writes Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News. “I’m not a one-hit wonder. I got to be back here,” Murray said on Sunday. “… There ain’t no way I can miss out on these types of events. It was a hell of a weekend. I have to keep working.”

Former Pelican J.J. Redick: Zion Williamson A “Detached Teammate”

February 22nd, 2022 at 12:02pm CST by Luke Adams

Responding to the news that CJ McCollum hasn’t yet had a chance to speak to Pelicans star Zion Williamson since being acquired by New Orleans at this month’s trade deadline, ESPN analyst J.J. Redick expressed disbelief and criticized Williamson for not being more engaged with the team.

“This is a little bit insane to me. There’s a general decorum of behavior that you should apply as a teammate,” Redick said on ESPN’s First Take on Tuesday (video link). “Look, I wasn’t the best player on any team I was on, but if there was a buyout possibility, if there was a trade possibility, I would always reach out to teammates. I called Ersan Ilyasova, I called Marco [Belinelli], I called Wes Matthews trying to get him to come to Philly. This just shows a complete lack of investment in your team, in the organization, in the city.”

Williamson, who underwent foot surgery during the offseason, has yet to play this season and has been rehabbing away from the team since early January. However, Redick doesn’t view that as a reasonable excuse for the star forward’s lack of communication with McCollum.

“I get that he’s hurt and away from the team, but you just traded for one of the 50 best players in the league, a guy that’s supposed to be paired with you,” Redick said. “Reach out and say hello.”

[UPDATE: McCollum says he has spoken to Williamson since Saturday]

Typically, opinions from an ESPN analyst about a player aren’t particularly newsworthy, since that analyst is often sharing his two cents without any inside info on the player or the team. However, this situation is a little different.

Besides being teammates with Williamson from 2019-21 before he retired as a player, Redick is also a fellow Duke alum, a fellow CAA client, and has publicly criticized of Pelicans head of basketball operations David Griffin, as Scott Kushner of NOLA.com tweets. As such, Redick’s comments about Zion are especially eyebrow-raising.

“This is a pattern of behavior with Zion that we are seeing again and again. And look, I was his teammate. I can describe him as a detached teammate. That is an accurate statement,” Redick said. “This is basic level of humanity, being a teammate. Send a text to a guy when he gets traded to your team. That is just normal behavior. That’s the bare minimum that you have to do.

“… This is something I addressed with Zion in front of the team,” Redick later added. “This is going back to his rookie year. There’s a responsibility that you have as an athlete when you play a team sport to be fully invested. You’re fully invested in your body, you’re fully invested in your work, and you’re fully invested in your teammates. That is your responsibility, and we have not seen that from Zion.”

Williamson’s desire to play for the Pelicans has been questioned since the 2019 draft lottery, when New Orleans won the No. 1 pick over bigger-market teams like the Knicks and Lakers. One report during the 2021 offseason suggested that some of Williamson’s family members wanted him out of New Orleans, while a subsequent story claimed that Zion and Griffin aren’t on particularly great terms.

For his part, the former No. 1 overall pick has repeatedly stated that he loves playing in New Orleans, but Redick and his ESPN colleague Stephen A. Smith expressed skepticism about Zion’s long-term commitment to the franchise.

“He’s never publicly come out and said, ‘I don’t want to be in New Orleans.’ But as we know, Stephen A., because we follow the league, where there’s smoke, there’s fire,” Redick said. “You didn’t hear rumors about Giannis [Antetokounmpo] being unhappy in Milwaukee. With Zion, you’ve heard that now for the last three years.”

Williamson will be eligible for a rookie scale extension during the 2022 offseason. Although no player has ever turned down a maximum-salary rookie scale extension, it’s unclear whether the Pelicans would even be comfortable putting that sort of offer on the table, given that injuries have limited Williamson to just 85 games since he entered the league in 2019.

When the Sixers extended Joel Embiid following his third NBA season, he had only appeared in 31 career games, so the two sides agreed to include injury-related language in his max deal in order to protect the team. The Pelicans and Williamson could theoretically explore a similar arrangement, but first they’ll have to decide whether the union is one they even want to continue for the next several seasons.

“New Orleans is going to have to make some sort of decision here,” Redick said. “We’ve seen this now for three years.”

Pelicans Notes: McCollum, Zion, Green, Lineup Change

February 20th, 2022 at 9:03am CST by Arthur Hill

CJ McCollum has been with the Pelicans for nearly two weeks, but he still hasn’t talked to injured star Zion Williamson, writes Christian Clark of NOLA.com. McCollum, who was acquired from the Trail Blazers in a February 8 trade, shared the surprising news Saturday in an interview with TNT.

“He’s a big part of our future, obviously,” McCollum said of Williamson. “We’re looking forward to getting him back. I haven’t had conversations with him directly. I’ve spoken to people close to him. I look forward to sitting down with him sooner than later. I know about as much as you do right now. But I’m going to get to the bottom of it.”

There has been an air of mystery surrounding Williamson ever since the start of training camp. The Pelicans announced on Media Day that he suffered a fracture in his right foot over the summer, but suggested he was expected to be ready for the start of the season. He has encountered repeated setbacks since then and has been working with a personal trainer in Oregon since January.

McCollum, who consulted with Portland’s front office on the trade, said he’s looking forward to playing alongside Williamson, no matter when it happens.

“The way he scores around the basket is exceptional — 60, 65%, essentially,” McCollum said. “He demands double-teams. He gets to the free-throw line. He gets you into the bonus early. And he gets out in transition as well. So it’s a guy who can do a lot of different things with the basketball and changes the game for everyone around him.”

There’s more from New Orleans:

The Pelicans made the move for McCollum with the understanding that Williamson may not return this season, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said this week in an appearance on “Get Up!” (hat tip to James Herbert of CBS Sports). Although the team hopes to reach the play-in tournament, the addition of McCollum is targeted toward improving next season.
One of the first things Willie Green had to do when he became the Pelicans’ head coach last summer was rebuild the morale of the team, Clark adds in a separate story. Josh Hart, who was sent to Portland in the McCollum trade, said he “hated playing basketball” under former coach Stan Van Gundy last season, but Green quickly turned that around. “Willie (had) all the trust in me to go out there and play my game and play with confidence,” Hart said. “I think that’s the biggest thing that we talked about. It wasn’t just standing in the corner and hoping and praying for the ball.”
The Pelicans’ chances of reaching the play-in tournament may depend on the success of a lineup change that Green made in the final game before the All-Star break, per William Guillory of The Athletic. Green inserted Jaxson Hayes into the starting unit in place of Devonte’ Graham, hoping Graham will find his shooting touch as a member of the second unit.

Pelicans Rumors: Williamson, Morant, Lineups, Arena

February 16th, 2022 at 10:38am CST by Luke Adams

It’s possible Pelicans forward Zion Williamson will require a second surgical procedure on the injured right foot that has kept him sidelined for the entire 2021/22 season, but nothing has been decided yet, sources tell Christian Clark of NOLA.com.

Another surgery would be a discouraging setback for Williamson and the Pelicans, effectively eliminating Zion’s chances of returning this season. But it sounds for now like New Orleans still hopes to avoid that scenario.

The former No. 1 overall pick, who received an injection in his foot in December to promote healing, is expected to get more medical imaging done before the end of the month to assess where he’s at.

Here’s more on the Pelicans:

Within the same NOLA.com story, Clark cites sources who say the Pelicans made multiple trade offers to the Grizzlies in advance of the 2019 draft in an effort to move up from No. 4 to No. 2. If those efforts had been successful, New Orleans would’ve controlled the draft’s top two picks and Williamson with Ja Morant. However, Memphis resisted and the Pelicans eventually traded down from the No. 4 spot.
Head coach Willie Green is still working on figuring out the best lineup combinations to use with New Orleans’ new star duo of CJ McCollum and Brandon Ingram, Clark writes in a separate article for NOLA.com. McCollum has been the Pelicans’ leading scorer in all three of his games so far, but the club is just 1-2 in those contests.
The Pelicans’ lease agreement with the Smoothie King Center expires in 2024, but they can exercise an option to extend that deal through 2029, and team president Dennis Lauscha says the franchise has no plans to go anywhere. “It’s not like we’re leaving,” Lauscha said, per Clark at NOLA.com. “I have every anticipation that for any reason if we’re getting close to that, we’ll pull the trigger on an extension so we can figure out a long-term plan. I don’t want anyone to think we’re using that as any type of leverage over the state of Louisiana.”

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