We compiled a group of individuals (programming note: 30 entries, not 30 people total) who mean something special to SLAM and to our audience. Read the full list here and order your copy of SLAM 248, where this list was originally published, here.

The process for “discovering” a high school basketball player changed a lot in the social media era.

To set some context: it used to be way different. In the ’80s, ’90s, even early ’00s, you’d read about an up-and-coming player in a newspaper or a magazine, then catch glimpses of them on television if somehow possible (though likely not until they hit the college ranks). You mostly saw very little—a small article here or there with a short text description and a photo; in some extreme examples, some decent footage on a sports highlight television show; and in some super-extreme examples, a magazine cover, the ultimate stamp.

Then came the internet, then Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, all that. Pretty soon everyone had a camera in their hands 24/7, which meant that when a high school basketball player did something amazing, it immediately hit the internet, and if it was really amazing, it immediately went viral.

In 2017, Zion Williamson went viral damn near every other day. He was a junior forward out of South Carolina with a combo of flight—he could soar up to eye-level with the rim and just sort of hang out there for a few seconds—and power—he was built like a linebacker and dunked with such ferocity it shook the gym and caused a frenzy amongst the kids in the stands—that made every one of his dunk clips, which flew around social media at light speed, a must-watch.

At the time, the world had started to move with such tempo that on Zion’s game nights, those highlights were viral by the time he woke up the next morning. So where did that put SLAM, a publication with a history of “introducing” players like Zion to the world?

It was a question I thought about a lot at the time. I had become Editor-in-Chief the year before, a role I earned in part because of my ability to help SLAM compete in the hyperspeed media universe. And though the answer would continue to change (and still changes often to this day), at the time it was simple: we’re going to put him on the cover and we’re going to tell his story properly, show people the real Zion. 

SLAM 210 was Zion’s first magazine cover shoot. By the time the cover dropped, everyone knew his name (from Instagram), but this was the first time the audience actually heard from him directly. We had an interview with a “longform” video (like, three minutes) and a slew of beautiful, crispy photographs, which I half-joked at the time were the first look anyone got of Zion’s face outside of blurry camera phone footage.

That content was the result of a day spent with Zion and his family in Spartanburg, SC, where they’re from. There’s a mural in the middle of the city that says “THERE’S ONLY ONE SPARTANBURG,” and Zion’s stepfather bolted a basketball hoop to the middle of the mural for our photos. The images of Zion would become iconic in a different way than, say, a 2001 magazine cover would’ve, but in their own new-age way. Months later, when every college fan base was photoshopping Zion in their favorite team’s jersey, they meme’d our cover photo almost exclusively. Two years later, when Zion was drafted and signed with Jordan Brand, the company bought the rights and used that same photo—funny because of the many adidas logos they had to scrub and replace to make that work. The photo looked great, though, and was still the best visual representation of Z more than two years after the initial shoot.

We continued to cover Zion extensively following that shoot. His season at Duke was a blast, and we shot a great cover with him for SLAM 222—The Future Issue—right before he was drafted in 2019 to the New Orleans Pelicans. He teamed up with SLAM favorite Lonzo Ball, so we shot another cover, a group shot that also included Brandon Ingram and Jrue Holiday. Fast forward to summer 2020, post-Covid explosion but pre-Bubble, we rented an Airbnb-turned studio, masked up and shot a cool cover with Z to hype up the forthcoming return of the NBA. A few years later, in early 2023, we celebrated the then-surging Pelicans with a Pen & Pixel-style cover featuring Zion, Ingram and CJ McCollum. And then last summer he got another front page, posing on KICKS 26 alongside fellow Jordan Brand endorsees Jayson Tatum and Luka Doncic.

As I’m typing this, Zion Williamson is just 23 years old, and though it seems like he’s been around the scene forever, his career is really still in its early chapters. He didn’t rocket to immediate NBA dominance, but some of the chatter about him not performing is just nonsense; he’s a two-time All-Star who’s averaged over 25 points and 6 boards per game while maintaining a 60 percent (!) field goal percentage. It’s already been incredibly impressive, and again—he’s 23! 

There’s an anecdote in my cover story from 2017 that explains what it was like to watch Zion work out in an empty gym, how it felt like each dunk literally shook the room, the sound of the ball smashing through the hoop reverberating off the walls. That intense, seemingly out-of-nowhere, shake-the-room energy—if a sound could be a mission statement, in that moment, Zion produced SLAM’s. Bold, powerful, striking…for us, it was a North Star in the form of a sound wave. We chase that feeling with our content—our covers, our videos, our photos, our stories—every day, and that shoot crystallized it for me. Plus, it helped me figure out what SLAM’s place in the lightning-fast media landscape should be. It looks different than it used to, but we still stand head and shoulders above the competition because of our elite storytelling and the credibility that a SLAM co-sign provides. 

So yeah—we’re Team Zion. Forever. 

Portrait by Zach Wolfe. Photo via Getty Images.

The post THE 30 PLAYERS WHO DEFINED SLAM’S 30 YEARS: Zion Williamson appeared first on SLAM.

Our photographer is snapping away, and Williamson needs to get on the same page as his fellow KICKS cover stars—Luka Doncic and Jayson Tatum. Smiles or straight faces?

On this day in early July, it’s hard not to smile. We’re on a boat in the heart of Paris, docked along the Seine. The Eiffel Tower—about a mile up the river—creates a backdrop so stunning it looks almost fake. After a morning of rain, the clouds have parted and the sun shines down, beaming through the ceiling windows. Biggie’s “Sky’s the Limit”—Zion’s choice—blasts through a speaker. Williamson, Doncic and Tatum are standing on white seamless paper, delicately holding the latest offerings in their signature lines with Jordan Brand—the Zion 3, Luka 2 and Tatum 1—like they’re newborn babies. A large-scale media event has been organized for the afternoon, where the three sneakers will officially be introduced to the world.

So, yeah, there’s a lot to smile about. But the verdict? Straight faces. Mean mugs.

KICKS 26 featuring Zion, JT and Luka is available now. Shop here.

On the surface, Williamson, Doncic and Tatum have a lot in common. They are all young superstars (Tatum is the oldest at 25, Doncic is 24 and Williamson just turned 23 in July)—leaders of the next generation to take over the NBA. They are all versatile, positionless players—embodiments of the direction the game is heading. And, of course, they are all part of Jordan Brand’s exclusive roster of signature athletes.

Yet, it’s the uniqueness of each player that makes the design process both challenging and stimulating for the Jordan team. “It makes it more interesting, to be real,” says David Cin, Jordan Brand Senior Design Director of Performance Footwear. “It’s definitely challenging—you have to study what their needs are.”

The Brand constructs its basketball products based on two core principles: motion and emotion. First, silhouettes are crafted to benefit the motion of players on the floor. Designers study game film (not unlike how coaches do) to discern the precise movements and styles of their athletes. They grab clips and break them down into individual frames, laying out the images on a giant mural board. The question then becomes, How do we build a shoe perfectly tailored to these types of movements? Mechanical engineers work with material experts and other specialists to come up with the right solutions.

Of course, design decisions are also informed by meetings with the athletes themselves. That’s where the emotion component of each pair—which deals more with the narrative that surrounds it—is mostly unpacked. Beyond creating products that enhance performance, the Brand aims to evoke emotion through storytelling. The Zion 3, Luka 2 and Tatum 1 are all reflections of their namesakes’ journeys to this point.

“At the end of the day, it’s about really digging deeper into who our athletes are as people and allowing our consumer to see that other side,” says Kelsey Amy, Jordan Brand Expert Color Designer of Performance Footwear.

“We knew that had to be a part of the equation, too,” adds Cin. “Thinking about, Hey, what’s that feeling you get [from shoes]? How can we tap into that? How can we inspire kids?”

Williamson is seated on the lower deck of the boat, where the multi-hued carpet nearly matches the “Sanctuary” colorway of his Zion 3. We’ve asked the Pelicans star to describe his emotions on this dreamlike afternoon. He takes a deep breath, and that youthful smile returns to his face. “Two words,” he says. “Lord Jesus! Lord Jesus! Lord Jesus!”

It’s a cliché, but Williamson really looks like a kid on Christmas morning—only he’s seen this present before, many, many times. As he tells KICKS, he’s even more excited about the Zion 3 than he was about the first two releases in his signature line.

“When you look at my signature shoes, each shoe was built to represent what I was doing extremely well during that time,” he explains. “During my first year and a half in the League, I was more of a post player. I could handle [the ball], but I was mostly, like, a stretch 4, so when I would do certain moves, it would be [about] power or my second jump. So my first shoe was designed on that. If you look at my second shoe, I started handling the ball more, so it was about containment of power while still being able to have finesse. The third one, I think—I’m sorry, I know—that the third one represents who I am and what my game is like.”

In an early meeting about the Zion 3 almost two years ago, Williamson opened up to the Jordan team about a piece of his story that had yet to be fully explored through his line. His path to the NBA, Zion explained, is often misconstrued as having been easy, largely due to his athletic gifts and ridiculous highlight tapes.

“He talked about how people think that it’s just been sweet,” says Jarrett Mann, Jordan Brand Global Product Director of Performance Footwear. “They think that he was an overnight sensation—that he basically came on the scene as a 16-year-old YouTube phenom, and it was dunks and blocks and he was the highest sought-after recruit since LeBron [James]. But he talked a lot about coming to that moment.”

It was far from easy, Williamson stressed. 

I’m gonna shock the world. Y’all just gotta wait.

– Zion Williamson tells SLAMKicks

As a kid growing up in Florence, SC—not exactly known as a hotbed for basketball—he had to get it out the mud. “A lot of people where I’m from, when you talk about making it out, it’s not just basketball we’re using,” says Zion. “We’re just trying to make it out in any way.”

By the age of 9, Williamson was waking up at 5 a.m. every day to train with his stepfather (in the South, it’s wise to beat the blistering sun). Coming from a state with so few NBA players, he struggled with self-doubt. “I would always just kind of have in my mind, I’m not gonna make it, I don’t think I’m gonna do it,” he says. “That way, if something went wrong—like I heard in all the stories growing up—then I wouldn’t feel as bad about it. I always had self-doubt, but the older I got and the more I trusted my game and trusted who I was—who I am—the doubt has been erased.”

The Zion 3 was structured to communicate this lesser-told part of Williamson’s past, and the “out the mud” mentality it cultivated in him. Joël Greenspan, Jordan Brand Senior Designer of Performance Footwear, worked with a computational designer to simulate the visual effect of Zion’s foot last launching through mud (they went as far as to study different viscosities and the mud specific to South Carolina). It wasn’t just about creating a color-splatter design on the upper; the Jordan team also sought to make the mud a useful component of the shoe.

“The mud is a metaphor. It’s the hardship, the difficult times that Zion had to go through,” says Greenspan. “It’s therefore the thing that made him strong. We knew immediately that we had this idea of mud to armor. We wanted the mud to be the thing that makes the shoe strong.”

The solution? Haptic ink—a special kind of screen print previously used on Nike’s Metcon silhouettes, which are, according to Expert Material Designer of Performance Footwear Jacqueline Lefferts, “the only shoes where people can climb up a rope without holes being burnt through them.” The haptic ink provides extra reinforcement and containment in stress areas. “I guess the process was really, How do we tell this narrative in a beautiful way but still make it performance enhancing?” Lefferts says. In addition to the ink, the shoe features a Formula 23 drop-in midsole for enhanced court feel and a Zoom Air bag for crash protection. Williamson’s “Zion” logo is displayed prominently on the heel.

Of course, the man behind that logo hopes that his new sneaker gives others the confidence to overcome their own uphill battles—to make it out the mud, just as he did. “No matter where you’re from, no matter what situation you’re in, no matter how bad things are looking, no matter how good things are looking—when you put the [Zion 3] on, you should feel that you can literally do anything,” he says. “Whatever your aspirations are, with the Zion 3 on, you got a chance. That’s what I want people to feel.”

That’s what Williamson will feel when he laces up the Zion 3 this upcoming season. “One of my favorite things [about the shoe]—you can zoom in on that,” he tells us, flipping up the tongue to reveal three words printed on the inside: Shock the World. “I still stand on that. I’m gonna shock the world. Y’all just gotta wait.”

“I would say of our portfolio of athletes, in terms of just chapters of life, [Luka] has the most unique journey to him arriving at where he is,” Amy says.

That journey spans thousands of miles, beginning in the beautiful city of Ljubljana, Slovenia, where Doncic—Jordan Brand’s first European born-and-raised signature athlete—grew up. His father, Sasa, played professional ball for several years, and Luka fell in love with the game right away. “I was basically with basketball my whole life,” he says. “My father was playing and I was always with a ball in my hands, always at his games. So I was just connected to basketball.”

He had a natural feel for the sport and played whenever and wherever he could, flocking to an outdoor court every day after school. By the time he was 8, Doncic was already running with a group of 12- to 14-year-olds. “It all just came naturally,” he says. “I always played with older guys and then I could learn a lot from them.”

At 13, Doncic was offered a five-year contract by Real Madrid. Accepting the deal meant leaving his family and friends behind and moving to a country where he didn’t even speak the native language. “It was tough. At first it was a for sure no,” he admits. “I didn’t want to go.” But Doncic eventually decided to make the leap, determined to continue chasing his NBA dream. He picked up Spanish in just three months and blossomed on the court, earning numerous Liga ACB honors and winning EuroLeague MVP for a championship squad in 2018.

Doncic developed a unique skill set while competing overseas. The court is smaller and there’s no defensive three seconds in the international game, shrinking the space that players have to operate. Doncic had to focus on how to create space, despite not being the most athletic player in the league. The result? A combination of footwork, vision and balance that is one of one—and makes the task of designing his signature line extremely challenging.

“With the Luka franchise in general, we have an athlete who really gives us some very unique problems to solve,” says Chad Troyer, Jordan Brand Global Senior Product Line Manager of Performance Footwear.

Problems like, How do we account for Doncic’s elite step-back? Answer: the IsoPlate, an innovation built exclusively for Luka that wraps up the medial and lateral forefoot and secures the foot when shifting from front to back.

Informed by meetings with the Mavericks training staff and additional insights from Doncic, the Luka 2 combines the IsoPlate and full-length Formula 23 with a new medial Cushlon 3.0 wedge foam to keep Luka’s foot in control and propel him out of his moves, facilitating even more separation between him and his defenders. “It’s always going to be about space creation for Luka,” says Greenspan.

Colorways of the Luka 2 celebrate the many chapters of Doncic’s life. The “Lake Bled” is a nod to the scenic body of water in Luka’s hometown in Slovenia—“I think it’s one of the most beautiful places not only in Slovenia, but in the world,” Doncic says—and the teal-based “Matador” is inspired by his pro career in Madrid.

“Luka has taken the world by storm, with kids all over the globe from every different kind of culture,” Troyer stresses. Those kids, from as far away as Slovenia and Madrid, can look at Doncic’s story as proof that your dreams are never too far-fetched. That it’s possible to make it all the way to the NBA if you chase that ambition just as Doncic did.

“It’s up to us as a Brand to be able to dig deeper on those stories and educate our consumer on who Luka is as a person,” adds Amy, “and how he got from point A to point B.”

Truth is, there was no magic formula—just hard work, a lot of sacrifice and a real passion for the game. “Ljubzen” (“Love” in Slovenian) is printed on the top eyelet of the Luka 2, and the words “NON DESISTAS” and “NON EXIERIS” are featured on the heel of each shoe respectively, which translates from Latin to “Never give up, never surrender.”

“It was tough leaving Slovenia and moving to Madrid when I was 13. But looking back, I think that experience pushed me to where I am today,” Doncic reflected upon the 2’s release. “I hope my journey, from a kid in Slovenia dreaming of playing in the NBA, can inspire people everywhere to go after their dreams and stay true to themselves no matter what.”

It was June 2020, and Jayson Tatum was chatting over Zoom with his team at Jordan. That’s when they suddenly dropped the news on him: the Brand was giving him a signature. And Tatum…barely reacted. He froze—not on Zoom, in real life. He was in complete shock. It wasn’t until the design process kicked off that it really began to sink in. This is actually happening. This is my dream.

During those early brainstorms, Tatum expressed his preference that his signature be lightweight and feel connected to his foot in a way that was second nature. “As a basketball player, you don’t want to think about the shoe when you’re playing,” he explains. “You just want to lace your shoes up and go play the game. That level of comfort and trust in a way from your sneaker allows you to be yourself.”

The eventual product—the Tatum 1—is the lightest sneaker in Jordan Brand’s performance line. “That’s what we tried to target first and foremost,” says Derek Foster, Global Product Line Manager of Performance Footwear. “And then, within that, we were just really trying to nail down some of the attributes that relate to Jayson. We looked at his biomechanics and the way he plays—he’s a very forefoot-dominant athlete.”

Designers were able to remove weight while still maintaining a strong TPU frame that supports Tatum’s side-to-side movements—as does the outsole, which implements a plate technology. An uncaged Zoom Air bag is included in the forefoot, allowing Tatum to play efficiently on his toes just the way he likes.

Aside from the sneaker’s functionality, Tatum emphasized the importance of the Tatum 1 being for kids, not just for him. He prioritized creating a kids-specific design that utilizes an innovative tailgate system for easy entry. His son’s nickname, Deuce, is also featured on the inside of the tongue of three of the first four colorways. “[Deuce] challenges me to be a better person, because I always know that he is watching everything that I do,” Jayson says. “He’s inspired me to be a better man, to be a better role model, to be a better basketball player.”

“What [Tatum] brought to the table, what felt important to him, was to be about the future—to inspire kids,” says Bryant Klug, Jordan Brand Expert Designer of Performance Footwear. “He isn’t treating it like a scrapbook of all his own details—we have some of that stuff on the shoe, but he always talked about it, like, who it was for. And it was always for other people.”

There are two things that I’ve kind of always lived by. [One], you can never dream too big…

Another thing that goes hand in hand with that is, the bigger you dream, the harder you have to work.

– Jayson Tatum

Those details—like the coordinates of St. Louis and the words “I Just Didn’t Quit” (inspired by a Nipsey Hussle quote) on the TPU piece of the outsole, as well as “Living Proof” on the outer part of the rubber—reflect his own journey, for sure, but with the intent of influencing the next Jayson Tatum. They tell the story of a kid from the Midwest—raised in a city that, like Williamson’s hometown, isn’t known for basketball—working tirelessly to reach the NBA. His head coach at Chaminade HS, Frank Bennett, insists Tatum took just two days off during his four years there—the two days following their state championship victory his senior season.

“There are two things that I’ve kind of always lived by,” Tatum says. “[One], you can never dream too big. I grew up in St. Louis. My mom lived check to check—she was 19 when she had me. We’re not supposed to be here. I had dozens of people when I was younger tell me that I should choose a different dream or another profession—you know, something more realistic. But another thing that goes hand in hand with that is, the bigger you dream, the harder you have to work. And I was never going to let anybody outwork me.”

As a young boy, Tatum looked up to Kobe Bryant. He had on “What The” Kobe 9s in the state title game as a senior and rocked the “Prelude” colorways of the Kobe 5 and 6 when he played on the EYBL circuit. He was inspired by the Mamba’s blueprint. Now Tatum is the one setting his own blueprint, and he has a brand-new canvas with which to convey it.

“I know firsthand the influence that you can have on somebody without ever knowing them or meeting them,” Tatum says, reflecting on the impact that Bryant—all the way out in Los Angeles—had on him in St. Louis.

“So I understand the responsibility that I have, with the platform that I have, to inspire the next generation, whether they want to be a basketball player or the best doctor in the world—whatever it is, just to inspire somebody.”

Portraits by Alex Woodhouse.

The post Luka Doncic, Jayson Tatum & Zion Williamson All in Paris?! SLAMKICKS Exclusive appeared first on SLAM.

Do you have a favorite SLAM cover? Of course you do. Many of us take it a step further—we have a top 5 list. A list that we keep stored away for barbershop discussions or comments sections. Our GOAT list usually ticks a few criteria boxes: 1, how iconic the cover is; 2, the impact of the player’s career; and 3, the cover’s concept.

One of the dopest concepts in recent years was SLAM 222. It was the second year SLAM dropped “The Future Issue,” this time with a Back to the Future theme that saw each cover athlete rocking a SLAM cover tee—of the cover they were on. It. Was. Sick.

Not only did the concept hit very different, the choice of ballers was perfect. The first cover featured Zion Williamson, the No. 1 draft pick (already on his second SLAM cover). The second cover featured 2020 draftee LaMelo Ball. They both had enough hype from their pre-NBA careers to make them household names in the basketball universe.

But it would be Ja Morant who would make this trilogy truly complete. The discussion around the other two names meant that the 2019 draft prospect got comparatively little airtime, so the casual hoops fan might have been forgiven for not knowing who he was. Like any classic SLAM issue, though, its iconic status would develop as a player’s career gained traction. Ja’s reputation as one of the most spectacular players in the L grew quicker than his locks, putting dudes on posters early.

Zion’s cover probably goes the hardest in this set, but the fact that Ja is fast becoming your favorite player’s favorite player means that his SLAM cover debut has secured its place in SLAM cover history, and all three versions of SLAM 222 on your top 5.

The post The SLAM Archives: SLAM 222 Featuring Ja Morant, Zion Williamson and LaMelo Ball From July of 2019 appeared first on SLAM.

He’s shown us new aerial possibilities. Ruthless left-handed spikes on the heads of poor souls just trying to rotate over from the weak side. But they just can’t hover above in the way that he can. 

He’s shown us new layers of fandom. Most old heads don’t think that a superstar athlete would love anime in the way that Z does. But they just can’t see how much Naruto translates to real life in the way that he can. 

He’s shown us new sides of vulnerability. He’s a screamer, a high-level emoter during games, especially after those aforementioned atmospheric forays. Even as the No. 1 overall pick, a young millionaire with “the life” at the ready for him, he’s been real enough to share that he feels isolation in the success. 

All these pieces that seemingly shouldn’t fit together add up to make Williamson the rarity that he is. Insanely capable of superhuman feats and ordinary humanity at the very same time. 

Yo, also, somehow he’s only 22 years old. Already an All-Star, already a historically accomplished player for his field-goal percentage, already two signature sneakers deep with Jordan Brand, already real enough to be real. 

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The Jordan Zion 2 has a decoupled outsole with a larger Air Strobel unit in the heel and Zoom Air (20 percent more than the standard Air bag) in the forefoot. That’s a lot of cushioning, because duh. The support was tripled-down with a high-wrapping cup sole. And varying materials across the upper lead to a forefoot strap for even more support. 

The many panels and materials and technologies within the Zion 2 reflect the man who wears them. Multidimensional and unique, with what’s hidden eventually revealing itself through new layers and sides and, of course, a bunch of dunks. 

Photos via Getty Images. Portrait by Atiba Jefferson.

The post The Greatness of Zion Williamson and His Two Signature Sneakers with Jordan Brand appeared first on SLAM.

While on set for their SLAM 242 cover shoot, we had Zion, CJ and BI play Point ‘Em Out—and let’s just say, they did not disappoint. The New Orleans Pelicans trio had us cracking up.

Check it out below.

Zion Williamson, CJ McCollum, and Brandon Ingram, who just appeared on the cover of SLAM 242, recently opened up about the team’s pursuit this season and how they plan on taking the franchise to new heights. Read here.

SLAM 242 is available now, as well as Gold Metal Editions and Cover Tees. Shop now.

The post WATCH: Zion Williamson, CJ McCollum, and Brandon Ingram Play SLAM Point Em Out appeared first on SLAM.

The team’s practice facility, located in Metairie, LA, just under 20 minutes from the Smoothie King Center, has two full-size courts, with one of the sidelines leading to an open-concept weight-room area. The three players are walking through the workout area and onto the court when we spot them from afar. But they stop halfway through the weight room and decide to turn to their right, where a wall mirror stands. 

Haircut check. 

Uniform check. 

Kicks check. 

Zion Williamson is busy making sure the blinged out jewelry around his neck is properly positioned for the looming photo shoot. 

All looks set now. 

SLAM 242 featuring Zion, CJ and BI are available now. Shop here.

The guys keep walking through the weight room and onto the court, where some team staffers await. Except, there’s only two of them now. 

Zion’s here. CJ McCollum is next to him. But Brandon Ingram, who was literally just with them a few seconds earlier, isn’t. 

Zion and CJ look around for BI and eventually realize that he stayed behind in the weight room area. There he is, still in front of the mirror, doing some standing bicep curls with dumbbells in each hand, going as fast as he can.  

Laughter ensues throughout the gym, from staffers to Ingram’s teammates. Zion and CJ shake their heads. They point out that he’s just trying to get a quick pump in so that his arms look swole for the photo shoot. 

Ingram is trying not to laugh. He can hear them teasing him from about 50 feet away—especially Zion. But he just stays focused on each rep, looking straight ahead at the mirror. Eventually, though, Ingram can’t keep a straight face anymore and begins to grin from ear to ear. He puts the dumbbells down and joins in on the laughter. 

The laughs set up the perfect mood for the 60 minutes that follow. It also serves as the perfect example of how this trio, and the Pelicans team as a whole, move in general, on and off the court, and how it’s ultimately contributed to the very joyful run they’ve embarked on over the past 11 months. 

See, we weren’t even sure if this shoot would happen just hours earlier. A couple of days before we were to be on set, it was announced that Zion Williamson would miss at least three weeks with a hamstring strain, which he suffered against the 76ers at the top of the week. If the shoot were canceled as a result, it would have been understandable. After all, two of our three cover stars were currently injured—BI had been out since late November after suffering a toe injury. But despite the bad news just 48 hours before the shoot, we were told everything was still a go. Even then, we were concerned about what mood the guys would be in, considering the sudden loss of a second All-Star right when the team was playing some of its best basketball.

Again, any kind of somber or toned-down enthusiasm from the guys on set would have been very reasonable, given the circumstances. Except, there was none of that. Jokes, laughs and even an early arrival is what we got. 

The symbolism in all of this? It appears that a major reason why this team was one of the biggest surprises to the start of the 2022-23 campaign—the Pels were tied for the most wins (24-14) in the Western Conference on the day of our early-January shoot and had a home record of 17-4, despite its elite trio of Zion-BI-CJ only playing 10 games together all season up ’til then—seems to stem from an overall culture of trust and true buy-in. Trust that the plan put together by the front office has worked to a T because the roster combo works to a T. There is nothing but smiles on set because deep down they feel like the best is yet to come. 

It’s easy to see that this group genuinely clicks by the way they speak of each other. 

“CJ is like the dude that knows everything, but in a good way,” says Zion of McCollum. “Like, if you need to get plugged in with somebody or you have questions about anything, CJ, really, I don’t really know how, but he knows everybody. He has a friend or cousin for everything. I’m like, Yo, CJ, I like these bags. [He’d say,] Yo, I know this dude out in so and so, met him three years ago. I got you. And you know what? He always comes through with it. And I respect that.”

Adds Ingram of Zion: “Z, [he] wake[s] up—basketball. He ain’t gotta come to practice, he gonna have 40. Can’t nobody stop him. He in his own lane, though. He his own person. He ain’t worried about nobody else and he just stay true to his self.”

CJ finishes it off by speaking on Ingram: “BI…works hard, cares about the game a lot, loves his teammates, wants to win [by] any means necessary. Basketball junkie. Wants to be great. He’s funny. He acts like he’s quiet and shy but he not, he not at all.”

Just 11 months earlier, it was looking really bleak in The Big Easy. Their franchise player, Zion Williamson, was out for the season, and the team had a 22-32 record (they started the season 3-16) as the trade deadline approached. And then came February 8, 2022. The Pels acquired CJ McCollum from the Trail Blazers in a trade that sent Josh Hart, Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Tomas Satoransky, Didi Louzada and some draft picks to Portland, while New Orleans also welcomed Larry Nance Jr (and Tony Snell, who’s no longer in N.O.).

New Orleans went 1-4 right after the trade, sinking their record to 23-36. According to ESPN’s BPI projections, they had only a 10 percent chance of making the playoffs at that point. But it was here when things began to take a turn. The team went 13-10 to finish out the regular season, earning a spot in the play-in tournament as the 9th seed, and then beat the Spurs and the Clippers (coming back from a 13-point fourth-quarter deficit) to earn the final spot in the playoffs. 

Their performance in the first round against the No. 1 seed Phoenix Suns really sent fans of the League (and in New Orleans, of course) into a frenzy. The series went six games (at one point it was tied 2-2, and kinda looking scary for CP3, Book and company), as the Pelicans made the Suns work for every last one of their buckets. And that was all without Zion, of course.

“Two things. I think when you get a taste of something, you want more of it, and being in the playoffs last year, seeing our fans come out and how important the games were, it made it better to play,” Ingram recalls. “It got me up more going into the playoff games, just going out there. And two, you just look around the room, and the players that you’re playing with—like, we know we got something special, we know we’re talented, but we know we have to come in here and work every single day and continue to learn the game, so that’s where our confidence comes from. Just being around each other every single day.”

With the Zion-BI-CJ pairing making its debut this past fall, expectations and excitement around what could be, might be, should be, all ran rampant. In his media day presser, Ingram said that a “championship” was the ultimate goal.

CJ has clarified in previous interviews that when the trade happened last year, he and his wife signed off on it because they saw the potential that New Orleans offered. Nonetheless, even he’s been taken aback by how good and how quickly the results have been. 

“I knew we were gonna be special, I just didn’t know how quickly we would get there. That’s always the hard part about figuring out roles, figuring out how to coexist, figuring out how to maneuver in game situations,” say McCollum. “You can’t script it. Like, you could practice and play together but you gotta be in the fold to really figure it out. And I think that’s what normally takes longer than what’s taken [us]. But I would say that I knew it was gonna be a great experience, I knew it was gonna be a great situation. [It’s been] probably better than I thought, honestly, in terms of how well we’re playing, how deep we are. I knew we were a good team, I didn’t know we were this deep, you know what I mean?

“Having conversations with the front office, with Willie [Green, head coach], understanding what they want to accomplish, short-term and long-term. I would say both parties, you know, for me and my family, and then from the organization, I would say that they’d probably say the same thing—it’s probably going better than we all expected because of how well I was able to assimilate into this culture, but also how well the younger guys were able to develop, and how I was able to just kind of figure out where I fit in.”

After finishing 21st in scoring last season, the team found itself at No. 3 in the League when we shot these photos 38 games into the season. And following a 6-6 start to the ’22-23 campaign, the team went on to win 12 of its next 14 games (including 7 in a row) to stamp its name among the top teams in the West early on.   

“A lot of buckets out there, a lot of buckets,” says Ingram of this year’s high scoring offense. “You know, the funny thing is we haven’t had a chance to play together, but for like maybe 10 games, at that. We got guys that just step up in roles that can really legit be starters on other teams. So, I think it’s just the culture, you know, we set an example of how to work around here and how we treat each other. So, from that, guys just come in here and work and we see the results on the floor. Everybody’s confident, 1 through 13, how[ever] many players that’s playing a night, everybody [is] confident to do what they do. So, coaches make it easy for us and the people that we’re around every day make it easy for us.”

The team eventually hit a slump with the absence of both Zion and BI in mid-January, eventually hitting a 10-game losing streak. They’re currently on a three-game winning streak after defeating the Hawks last night.

There’s still lots to smile about, though. And we’ll probably see a lot more of those come spring when the trio is healthy and ready to outdo last year’s playoff run. 

“I think it’s frustrating for Brandon, frustrating for Zion, that they don’t get to play more,” Pelicans GM Trajan Langdon tells us over the phone a couple of weeks after the shoot. “For us, taking a holistic view, it’s, you know, somewhat of a silver lining because you do get to see these [other] guys develop more, have them play a bigger role. There’s times when all three have been out of the lineup and other guys have to step up and play a huge role. Play 32 minutes, play 28 minutes, when [they’re] used to only playing 18. Guys that you didn’t think might be in the rotation at the start of the year now get to play 10, 15 straight games. So, I think that is going to bode well toward the end of the year when we get everybody healthy, that these guys have had bigger roles in big moments and games. And so that’s not gonna be an issue if they have to play in the fourth quarter at a crucial moment—they would have already done it. And if these injuries didn’t happen, that opportunity might not have happened for that player or players during the year. So, we’re looking at this as a silver lining and when we get these guys back, like you said, we’re deep. But it’s gonna make us even stronger in our depth, hopefully in a late March, early April playoff push.”

CJ adds: “I think for us playing in the playoffs [last year] against the high seed, having to fight in, gives you an idea of, like, OK, what can happen now if we get a higher seed? What can happen if we get home court advantage? What can happen if we win 50 games? You start to imagine what that’s like and then you go chase it. And I think that’s the stage that we’re in now—How do we win 50 games? How do we get a high seed? How do we get home court? What does that look like? What’s that experience gonna be like? And I think when you go through those moments and those experiences, it creates a growth mindset.” 

SLAM 242 is out now in this exclusive Gold Metal Edition and Cover Tee. Shop now.

Portraits by Atiba Jefferson

The post Zion Williamson, CJ McCollum, and Brandon Ingram are Ready to Take the Pelicans to New Heights appeared first on SLAM.

New Orleans Pelicans star Zion Williamson is expected to miss multiple weeks with a hamstring strain, sources tell ESPN. Williamson underwent an MRI today.

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) January 3, 2023

Williamson suffered his hamstring injury on Monday against the Philadelphia 76ers. He left the game and didn’t return after he pulled up and grabbed his right leg while rumbling down the court. An MRI on Tuesday confirmed the severity of Williamson’s injury, according to Woj.

Zion cruising through traffic pic.twitter.com/G6MZok2Pvj

— New Orleans Pelicans (@PelicansNBA) January 3, 2023

This multiple-week absence will be the first time the Pelicans will miss Williamson for an extended amount of time. New Orleans (23-14) is a game back of first place, behind the Nuggets (24-13) and second-lace Memphis Grizzlies (23-13).

Williamson is averaging 26.0 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 4.6 assists per game on 60.8 percent shooting from the field and 36.8 percent from beyond the arc.

The post REPORT: Zion Williamson Expected to Miss Multiple Weeks with Hamstring Injury appeared first on SLAM.

Those abilities and the opposing defenses’ inability to keep him in front of them led to Williamson scoring 40 points for the first time during his three-year career. Furthermore, Williamson has a distinctive playstyle where he goes through or around defenders on his way to the rim with his incredible combination of size, strength, quickness, explosion, touch, and body control.

Simply put, Williamson is more likely to wear your ass out and break you down for 48 minutes than play like Kyrie Irving and finesse his way to the rim. Case in point, Williamson attempted 20 of his 21 shots in the paint, and only two came from outside of the restricted area. And that came against three-time Defensive Player of the Year and Timberwolves defensive anchor Rudy Gobert guarding the rim.

On Wednesday, all those unique qualities came together to help Williamson post a career-high 43 points on 14-21 shooting from the field, including 33 in the second half, as he showed off that he can close games out in high-pressure moments. He also went 14-19 from the free-throw line and contributed five assists to help New Orleans beat Minnesota 119-118.

“I’ve never seen anything like him. I’ve played with different types of players – scorers and guys who score in a variety of ways. But never someone who’s so paint-dominant,” teammate CJ McCollum said, per The Athletic. “Everything is predicated on drives to the paint. … the ability to make the right plays and be able to handle and move the way he does. The fluidity in his movements, but also the body control on the jumps. I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything like that. I don’t think we will.”

Career night. Special moment for Z. (via @PelicansNBA) pic.twitter.com/NoG1XD6EmK

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) December 29, 2022

Williamson’s playstyle has helped New Orleans (22-12) take the top spot in the Western Conference. It’s a developing spot that matters a great deal to Williamson. The one-time All-Star is focused on winning and knows fans and media will “remember winners.”

“People remember winners,” the 22-year-old Williamson said, per ESPN. “When you look at some of the greatest of all time, the first thing you go to is championships, what they did in big moments.

Williamson also added that teammate McCollum urged Williamson to take over in the fourth quarter. And the former Duke Blue Devil took that advice and ran with it as head coach Wille Green told the Pelicans to “get the ball to Z and get the f— out of the way,” according to McCollum. Williamson scored 14 points over the final three minutes of the game.

43 last night. Most points Zion has scored so far. pic.twitter.com/FyEYdlLKuQ

— SLAM Kicks (@SLAMKicks) December 29, 2022

He’s a relentless player that doesn’t take his foot off the pedal, especially when attacking the paint. Williamson doesn’t settle for jumpers; among his 422 shot attempts, 396 of them have been in the paint. That constant aggressiveness helped Williamson average 30.2 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 5.8 assists per game in December.

New Orleans can build on their West-leading schedule when they play the 76ers on Friday.

The post CJ McCollum Has ‘Never Seen Anything’ Quite Like Zion Williamson’s Career-High 43-Point Outing appeared first on SLAM.

Despite having versatile weapons like Brandon Ingram and CJ McCollum, the Pelicans’ defense has been responsible for the team’s early success. In particular, it has been the highly criticized Zion Williamson at the forefront of it.

Williamson has averaged a career-high 1.3 steals a game to go with 0.6 blocks. According to ESPN, the acrobatic sensation has held opponents to 37.4 percent shooting as the contesting defender, which ranks fifth amongst players contesting 10 shots per game this season.

Looking back at New Orleans’ defense last year, they were 18th in the League in defensive rating without Williamson, who was out with a broken bone in his right foot. This season, the Pelicans are No. 3 in the League defensively, thanks to their 107.6 defensive rating.

Although Williamson’s impact and improvements defensively have surprised many this year, Ingram noticed the change before the campaign started and highlighted this aspect of his teammate’s game during the preseason.  

“You know what I’ve seen differently, especially on ball, is his defensive awareness,” Ingram told ESPN before the Pelicans’ preseason game versus the Miami Heat. “It looks like he has it in the back of his mind to have the effort on that end. That’s going to be something big for our team – We know we can score the basketball. But if everybody is defending and setting examples for everybody to go out there and defend, then that’s going to be much more difficult to beat us.”

As the 22-year-old’s defense continues to thrive, don’t let this distract you from what he is capable of offensively. This season, Williamson has still managed to put up 23.9 points and 7.2 rebounds on his regular impressive, efficient shooting from the field at 59 percent. The Pelicans forward will look to continue his all-around form with New Orleans again on Friday when they takes on the Phoenix Suns on Friday.

The post Zion Williamson’s Improved Defensive Play Raises the Pelicans’ Ceiling appeared first on SLAM.

The New Orleans crowd chanted Jose Alvarado’s name as the game clock wound down to its waning seconds to finish the Pelicans’ 121-106 victory over the Denver Nuggets. Despite a big performance from Zion Williamson, Alvarado was the hero today, with a career-high 38 points off the bench, in only 26 minutes.

Alvarado was on fire. He hit eight three-pointers on 72.7 percent shooting from distance and 63.2 percent from the field. The crowd serenaded him as the Pelicans’ won their fourth consecutive game. They’re 8-2 in their last ten games. 

Before Sunday, Alvarado’s NBA career high was 23 points, and he had never scratched 30 points during his four-year tenure at Georgia Tech. None of that mattered at the end of the night, though. 

“My mindset was just, ‘Let’s win this game.’ Not necessarily, like, I’m going to come in and shoot. But I’m always in the mindset that when I’m open, knock this down. Don’t let them leave you open,” Alvarado said via The Athletic. “I just want to keep improving my game. I want to expand it, not just the jump shot. Just make the right play at all times.”

Before the season started, SLAM chopped it up with Alvarado about his mindset and where he wanted to take his game next. Alvarado said he was intent on expanding his offensive game while continuing to do all of the little things that earned him his rotation opportunity as an undrafted rookie in the first place. 

“Do something that makes you impact the day. Not just the game but the day,” Alvarado told SLAM of his mindset prior to the season. 

Alvarado isn’t just impacting games or single plays anymore; he’s affecting wins. The Pelicans are in second place in the Western Conference following this recent surge. 

“I always have believed in myself, obviously, but for me to do what I did made me feel so much excitement and belief,” Alvarado told SLAM. “It was like, Alright Jose, this ain’t no more if or what. This is you now. This is what it is now. It taught me that if I be me, everything else will take [care] of itself.”

I’d call 38 points and the dub; everything is taking care of itself. 

The post Jose Alvarado On His Mindset During Career-High 38 Points Outing: ‘Let’s Win This Game’ appeared first on SLAM.

“I told him tonight in the locker room that he was a monster. He carried us. He continued to make the right plays over and over again,” Pelicans head coach Willie Green said, via The Athletic. “He was flying around on both ends of the floor … It’s just impressive. Impressive to see.”

The Pelicans were without Brandon Ingram and CJ McCollum, the second and third leading scorer on the team. Williamson was expected to perform and he did just that, showing not only a return to form but a new peak of sustained excellence since he’s returned from his nagging knee injuries. 

“When you have players like BI and CJ out, you’ve got to pick up where they affect the game,” Williamson said. “I just want to thank Coach [Green] for trusting me to be myself, and the rest of the coaching staff and my teammates. If they don’t trust me, it may look a little different for me.”

His teammates showed that same level of trust in Williamson’s game. 

“He was a monster today. It was probably one of his best all-around games that I’ve seen,” said Pelicans forward Trey Murphy. “I’m super proud of him and the work that he’s put in. I know you guys criticize him a lot on his defense. Hopefully, he got more than a B+ today.”

Williamson’s defensive effort and conditioning have been called into question throughout his career but he exhibited the full repertoire on both ends last night, he was everywhere. He even had a key steal and bucket after a Toronto run that cut their lead from 31 to 11, to officially put the game away. 

Zion Williamson is a player always on the verge of improvement, it would be no surprise at all if he tops this showing the next time out. 

The post Zion Williamson’s ‘Monster’ Performance Lifts Pelicans to a Win Over Raptors appeared first on SLAM.

However, numerous injuries have kept Williamson sideline during pivotal periods, and some, like his foot injury in 2021, kept him away from the court for an entire season. The excitement the Duke product once had from his fans turned into a wave of negativity around his production towards his physical health.

In year four, the former first-overall pick has proven he’s lived up to his draft value by making history in his 100th career game. Williamson has scored 2,524 points through the first 100 games of his career, the most scored by any player since Michael Jordan (2,721) did it, according to ESPN Stats & Info.

Yea, he did a lil bit of everything #Pelicans | @Gatorade pic.twitter.com/yFy8cNupdM

— New Orleans Pelicans (@PelicansNBA) November 29, 2022

The NBA has seen some generational talent, but only a select few come close to the level of production Jordan once did with the Chicago Bulls. With Williamson’s total points being second to the iconic figure, there’s no doubt the Pels fanbase has regained faith in No. 1.

Zion spins and sinks the and-1 in the clutch!

The @PelicansNBA lead by 2 on NBA League Pass with 43.1 remaining. Use code NBA50 at checkout for 50% off https://t.co/kv8oudlxUm pic.twitter.com/LV2i3Y5Pp1

— NBA (@NBA) November 29, 2022

That’s one record down and several more to go for Williamson to put under his belt. The human highlight reel may be next to a name like Jordan for his 100th career game, but that doesn’t mean he’ll earn the same level of respect as one of the all-time best. A healthy Williamson has shown his capabilities, and it’s just a matter of remaining consistent with them.

The post Zion Williamson Makes Michael Jordan-Like History in His 100th Career Game appeared first on SLAM.

Before the start of last season, Williamson weighed over 300 pounds, a 15-pound gain from his entrance to the League in 2019. The criticism had been constant until the previous week when Williamson spoke to FOXSports on the body shaming he’s faced.

“What people don’t understand is, even the writers and stuff, if they have children of their own, imagine if somebody talked about their child how they spoke about me. Critiquing my body, critiquing how I look.”

Out of the 22.7 points Williamson is averaging this season, 18.9 of them are coming from inside the paint, second best in the League. Williamson has become the force the League knew he could one day become, thanks largely to the training staff that spent hours with him in the gym and his personal chef this past off-season, Jhonas Lewis.

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A post shared by Zion Williamson (@zionwilliamson)

Lewis had altered the eating habits of Williamson, who had ‘two large Dr. Peppers’ along with his meal. More importantly, Lewis’ meals would cut Williamson to a healthy standard.

“I don’t know if I’m supposed to say the number, but I will say this: [He lost] well over 35 pounds, for sure,” Lewis said. “We were dropping almost 7-9 pounds a week. By the third week, he started seeing the results. You couldn’t pay Zion to put his shirt on.” 

It’s safe to assume Williamson is satisfied with his weight, but the criticism still lingers across his mind. With the way the Pelicans have played with Williamson on the floor, it looks like the Duke product is using the weight trolling as a motivation to succeed.

“Every time they talked about me, it was about weight,” Williamson said. “I don’t even think they realized what kind of impact that can have on you.”

The post Zion Williamson Speaks Against Media ‘Critiquing’ His Body appeared first on SLAM.

He may have encountered some bumps in the road fighting multiple injuries, including a broken foot that prevented him from playing at all last year. However, through five games of his comeback season, Williamson has proven that the talent is still there and that he’s going to be one of the best players in the League for years to come.

CJ Zion pic.twitter.com/1pV3p974k4

— New Orleans Pelicans (@PelicansNBA) November 3, 2022

After the Lakers beat the Pelicans 120-117, LeBron James (20 points, 10 rebounds, eight assists) was full of praise for Williamson. The former Duke Blue Devil scored a team-high 27 points, grabbed five rebounds, and dished out seven dimes to his teammates. The four-time MVP believes that Williamson “is on the verge of being great” and that his performance on Tuesday “showed why he’s gonna be who he’s gonna be.”

“Zion is on the verge of being great — he’s going to be great in this League for a long time. Tonight he showed why he’s gonna be who he’s gonna be.”

"Zion is on the verge of being great, and he's going to be great in this league for a long time…"

LeBron James on Zion Williamson after their battle in the Lakers' OT win! pic.twitter.com/jcXEL8AAmB

— NBA (@NBA) November 3, 2022

James said that Williamson is the type of talent the League has “never seen before,” while comparing his physical talent — “his size, his spend, high athleticism” — to NBA legends like Charles Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal, and Giannis Antetokounmpo.

“He’s in great shape right now — a great talent, someone we’ve never seen,” James said of Williamson, per Sporting News. “We’ve never seen a talent of his size, his speed, high athleticism — just like Giannis. Just like a (Charles) Barkley or Shaq (O’Neal). There’s certain talents in our League that you’ve never seen before.”

Lakers’ LeBron James on Pelicans’ Zion Williamson: “He’s in great shape right now… We’ve never seen a talent of his size, his speed, his athleticism. Just like a Giannis. Just like a Barkley or Shaq. There’s certain talents in our league that you’ve never seen before.” pic.twitter.com/JmQXeCs1VR

— Ben Golliver (@BenGolliver) November 3, 2022

He also said guarding Williamson and trying to prevent him from going to the rim with his dominant left hand is comparable to saying the same about other tough-to-guard lefties like Manu Ginobli or Lamar Odom.

“It’s so funny when you hear people say, ‘stop him from going left’ … It’s the same thing I heard for so many years with (Manu) Ginobili — Lamar Odom — When you’re great, it doesn’t matter what you do, they’re going to figure out a way.”

Zion pic.twitter.com/ex7KmFc0K4

— New Orleans Pelicans (@PelicansNBA) November 3, 2022

For the season, Williamson is averaging 22.8 points, 7.4 rebounds, and 4.2 assists per game on 50.5 percent shooting from the field while playing 31.2 minutes per contest.

The post LeBron James: Zion Williamson ‘On the Verge of Being Great appeared first on SLAM.

The Utah Jazz took on the New Orleans Pelicans Sunday night, and it was a beautiful display of basketball at the highest level. Whenever you have two hungry teams going at it, especially this early in the season? As a basketball fan, you know that you are in for a real treat! This game needed overtime, where it came down to the wire as the Jazz took home the win with an insane layup by Kelly Olynk as time expired.

Following the game, Olnyk had the following to say about this year’s Jazz team:

“Top to bottom, guys are playing hard, playing the right way, playing together, unselfish,” Olynyk said. “It’s been really fun to play the first three games. We’re getting better and learning more about each others’ games, it’s been showing, and it’s exciting.”

The Jazz was down by as many as 17 points in the fourth quarter. However, the team did not panic and stayed on the course. Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen was a huge spark for the team, finishing the game with 31 points on 9-17 shooting from the field and 12 rebounds. Markkanen also was a perfect 11/11 from the free throw line, hitting some clutch ones late to pad Utah’s come-from-behind victory and keep them undefeated.

While the Pelicans fought hard and left Utah with the loss, they also lost Zion Williamson late in the 4th due to injury after he took a hard fall on a fastbreak play. The team ruled the injury a posterior hip contusion, and they will continue to evaluate Williamson’s condition. Their next game is not until Tuesday, so we should expect an update on Williamson’s status later Monday or by gametime on Tuesday.

While still early in the season, it is clear that these two teams are ones that we should keep an eye on as the season progresses.

The post Kelly Olynk’s Game-Winner Lifts ‘Exciting’ Jazz Over the Pelicans appeared first on SLAM.

After missing last season with a broken foot, Williamson joined a revamped Pelicans core to wipe out the Brooklyn Nets in a 130-108 blowout. Williamson scored 25 points and pulled down nine rebounds, three assists, and four steals in 30 minutes of action. The all-around performance gives fans a real sense of how dominant he was in his return. However, Williamson says he had just “a decent starter performance.”  

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After the game, Williamson said, “It’s a lot of room for improvement. I’m still learning my teammates. Now we get real in-game reps. I’m just excited to grow.”

Looking at Williamson’s stats from the last time he played, Williamson has reason to believe his outstanding performance was not on par with his standard performances. He went an efficient 11-22 from the floor, slightly down from his career 60.4 percent field goal shooting. His teammates and Coach Willie Green weren’t so rigid with their praise. 

Coach Willie Green said it was like Williamson “didn’t miss a beat.” Fellow All-Star teammate Brandon Ingram said he “picked up where he left off.”

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A post shared by New Orleans Pelicans (@pelicansnba)

Even his opponents were impressed with his seamless return to play.

“He looked healthy to me,” Kevin Durant said. “He looked good. Got up 22 shots, nine rebounds, 25 points. At this point, it’s just typical for him.”

Williamson has been dominant since the moment he stepped on an NBA floor. Everyone and we mean everyone, will be watching and waiting for his dominance to continue. 

The post Zion Williamson Calls First Game Back ‘a Decent Starter Performance’ appeared first on SLAM.

“Twitter already did its thing,” Williamson said jokingly, per ESPN. “They are the doctors, apparently.”

Williamson avoided serious injury and is expected to be day-to-day moving forward, according to him and Coach Willie Green. Green added that Williamson isn’t expected to miss an extended period of time and clarified that he removed Williamson from Wednesday’s game against the Miami Heat for precautionary reasons after he rolled his ankle early in the second quarter while he drive to the rim.

Williamson tweaked his ankle after he planted his left foot trying to get into the lane around Heat center Dewayne Dedmon. He played another three minutes before checking out for good with 11 points, two rebounds, and four assists on 3-7 shooting from the field and 5-6 from the free-throw line.

“It was one of those things where it happened, and I popped back up, like, ‘Yeah, I’m straight,'” Williamson said. “Played a few minutes after that, it felt fine. Then they sent me to the back just to double-check. We wanted to look at it, had a doc look at it, and he just said a little day-to-day soreness. And, but outside of that, I personally feel fine. Wasn’t bad news from the docs.”

Going into Friday’s preseason finale against the Atlanta Hawks, the Pelicans hope they can play their projected starting lineup. The group hasn’t played together yet while Brandon Ingram recovers from left fifth toe soreness. CJ McCollum has only played in two preseason games after Wednesday. Ingram told ESPN that he “felt good” and that his rehab has put him in a position to play on Friday.

New Orleans starts the season with an Oct 19. matchup against the Brooklyn Nets.

The post Zion Williamson Listed as Day-to-Day After Tweaking Left Ankle appeared first on SLAM.

The loss in the opening round turned out to provide optimism to Pelicans fans on their future as they won two games without their star player Zion Williamson.

Would not be denied pic.twitter.com/OR7fvLcBFx

— New Orleans Pelicans (@PelicansNBA) October 8, 2022

Williamson hasn’t stepped on the court since May 4, 2021, due to a broken right foot suffered while working out in the off-season. Missing all of last season due to the injury, Williamson will now return on Oct. 19 against the Brooklyn Nets, aiming to make a statement for all the chatters that labeled him a ‘bust.’

“I was in dark places at times,” said Williamson on his recovery. ” — just seeing how the world reacted? — It did a lot on my spirit.”

Zion Williamson plays another game of basketball tonight #Pelicans | @zionwilliamson pic.twitter.com/3diD8J7ntB

— New Orleans Pelicans (@PelicansNBA) October 9, 2022

The 2019 first-overall pick showcased all of his raw athleticism at Duke University. However, a slew of injuries has grounded his ascent to superstardom in the League. Since 2019, Williamson has played 85 games with the Pelicans. For a four-year player, his unavailability has been a source of frustration, but when he’s been on the court, Williamsons’ greatness can’t be denied.

Williamson’s averaged 27.0 points while shooting 61.1 percent from the field with an impressive 125.3 offensive rating.

“They’re gonna see that my game has evolved,” said Williamson. “I’m gonna show the world things that I’ve had in my arsenal that I didn’t show before.”

Zion for 3⃣ pic.twitter.com/M3hAKkUMw7

— New Orleans Pelicans (@PelicansNBA) October 10, 2022

The Pelicans have high hopes for the dynamic duo of all-star Brandon Ingram and Williamson. Though he hasn’t played a game in over a year, Williamson is hopeful that his weight loss and a new bag of tricks will bring the Pelicans its first championship in franchise history.

“One of the main goals was to get Zion back to the same athletic ability he had before the injury,” said Williamson’s strengths and conditioning coach Jasper Bibbs. “In the process, he’s improved athletically. I truly think he’s a better athlete now than he was before. Once you guys see him on the court, I think you’ll agree.”

The post Zion Williamson Ready to Show NBA World How Much ‘My Game Has Evolved’ appeared first on SLAM.

“I feel like I’m at my best right now — Moving faster, jumping higher. I feel great.”

The first overall pick of the 2019 Draft appeared at Media Day to remind everyone just how special basketball is to him; and the matter of transforming his body. Williamson broke down how he has been able to keep his body at a satisfactory level for him on Monday.

“I’ve learned a lot from a nutrition standpoint… how long I need to be in the gym and the most efficient way to work out.

Williamson has only played in 85 games for the Pelicans in his four-year career, but his dominance from his days at Duke University still transferred to the pros.

Williamson averaged 22.5 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 2.1 assists per game in the 22 games he played during his rookie season. The following year showed many why he went number one in the 2019 Draft, increasing his points per game average to 27 while also adding 7.2 boards and 3.7 assists. In both seasons, he was taking smart and efficient shots jumping from 58.3 percent shooting in 2019 to 61.1 percent shooting from the field in 2020.

“I found true resolve within the game of basketball. Something mentally in me shifted; the game of basketball is it for me. It’s my love. It’s what I want to do.”

Hearing words like the ones Williamson used at Media Day is certainly encouraging for the city of New Orleans. However, with that comes high expectations, and Williamson should be expected to prioritize being that potent, freakish athletic scorer the Pelicans took their chances on. With Brandon Ingram, CJ McCollum, and several key players at their position, the team adding back their superstar player with a killer mindset can reach high destinations.

The post Zion Williamson at His “Best Right Now’ After Rigorous Offseason appeared first on SLAM.

Heading into his fourth season, the 2021 All-Star spent eight weeks in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., executing a meticulously laid plan with strength and conditioning coach Jasper Bibbs to help Williamson prepare for a career-defining season and to become “a better athlete now than he’s ever been.”

“He’s in fantastic shape,” Bibbs told The Athletic. “He’s been committed to putting in the work day in and day out. I’m really proud of what he’s been able to accomplish. He’s a better athlete now than he’s ever been.”

How has Zion Williamson been preparing for Year 4?

He constructed a rigid 8-week plan with strength and conditioning coach Jasper Bibbs that Bibbs believes will have Zion looking as good as ever.

"He’s a better athlete now than he’s ever been.”https://t.co/sXdghj6sRw

— Will Guillory (@WillGuillory) September 19, 2022

While Bibbs didn’t reveal how much weight Williamson has lost or how much the former Duke Blue Devil currently weights, he has said that the results he and the Pelicans have seen are “phenomenal.” Bibbs used to work as a strength and conditioning coach with the Utah Jazz, where he developed a relationship with then-Jazz All-Star Donovan Mitchell.

Bibbs is now working with Williamson off that relationship with Mitchell. Bibbs and Williamson worked together while Williamson rehabbed his foot in Portland, and he became a more significant fixture after Williamson returned to New Orleans in March. When Williamson was fully cleared for basketball activities in May, the pair was able to focus on what matters the most for Williamson, hooping.

Bibbs and Williamson worked together to formulate that aforementioned eight-week plan that would help him “overcome the physical and mental hurdles that with being away from the game for so long.” During those eight weeks, Williamson did two-a-day workouts and had a specific nutrition plan during their time together in Fort Lauderdale.

“We focused on addressing body composition — his body weight, body fat, etc. — while maintaining and improving flexibility, strength, and power,” Bibbs said.

“We also focused on improving his overall fitness. The more weight he carries around, the more stress it puts on the body. We focused on aerobic and anaerobic basketball-specific conditioning. One of the main goals was to get Zion back to the same athletic ability he had before the injury. In the process, he’s improved athletically. I truly think he’s a better athlete now than he was before. Once you guys see him on the court, I think you’ll agree.”

Bibbs and Williamson also prioritized injury prevention during his daily routine; Bibbs said that Williamson specifically worked on his flexibility and range of motion. Bibbs also noted that fans would be excited to see Williamson pay with joy and the explosive athleticism that helped him arrive on the scene as a high schooler at Spartanburg Day School School in South Carolina.

“We’re very excited about all of it. I know I’ve said it a few times,” Bibbs said. “But I’m just really happy with his commitment to improving his fitness and body composition. He never wavered, and his capacity to work at a high level improved accordingly because of everything he was doing on a daily basis. He’s done a fantastic job, and I’m very happy for him.”

The post Zion Williamson ‘A Better Athlete Than He’s Ever Been’ After Rigid Summer appeared first on SLAM.

And yet, Williamson’s journey in the L hasn’t always been the easiest—he saw action in only 24 games during his rookie year after he tore his meniscus during the preseason. The following year, he played in 61 games and made his first All-Star appearance, only to miss the entire 2021-22 season after suffering a broken foot that required surgery.

Some critics pointed to his work ethic, while others pointed to his weight, but in a recent interview with GQ, he says everything was out of his control. The injury put Williamson in a dark place.

“It’s been a lot. I can sit here and explain it, but nobody will really be able to feel it the way I did. My foot was broken and I couldn’t magically heal it. It hurt, because I love the game of basketball. But because of it I was experiencing hate and pain from people I don’t know every day, and it started to wear on me.”

How did Williamson get himself through this tough time? Anime.

Zion has talked about his love for anime before, particularly the iconic Naruto series. He says that he’s always viewed life through the eyes of Naruto and that the show’s storyline is an accurate reflection of his life.

“For a while nobody took Naruto seriously,” he told GQ. “And then he went and trained with [Master Shinobi] Jiraiya for three years, right? And he came back at 16 years old, goated.

“Sure enough, I’m 16 years old and suddenly all of the attention starts coming. I remember thinking, Yo, that’s crazy. That’s exactly when it happened for Naruto, and it’s when it’s happening for me.”

When Williamson appeared on his first-ever SLAM cover back in high school, that’s when he says that things really started to hit him (you can check out all of Zion’s SLAM covers here).

“It really hit me when SLAM put me on the cover,” he said. “I remember realizing, Oh, this isn’t just a high school thing. They’re talking college. They’re talking the NBA.”

But with stardom comes criticism, and Williamson has learned that the hard way. After reportedly signing a five-year extension with the New Orleans Pelicans in July, Zion says he’s ready to stay true to himself and his game.

“I had to come to a realization,” he explains. “No matter what the world is saying, I have to remember that I am who I am and stay true to that. That’s what Naruto did, and that’s what I’m going to do.”

Believe the hype because when Zion Williamson makes his return, he’s surely going to shock the world (word to SLAM 222).

Photos via Getty Images.

The post Zion Williamson on Dealing with Injuries, Naruto, and His First SLAM Cover appeared first on SLAM.

𝗗𝗢𝗡𝗘 𝗗𝗘𝗔𝗟: @ZionWilliamson has signed a contract extension with the #Pelicans! pic.twitter.com/zKiXS1ku9W

— New Orleans Pelicans (@PelicansNBA) July 6, 2022

At 22-years-old, Williamson will come into his fourth NBA season with a lot to prove after missing all of last season with a broken foot. Injuries have hampered the former No. 1 overall pick in the 2019 draft during his few years in the League. When healthy, Williamson has been an All-Star and one of the best young talents amongst the new generation attempting to take over as the old heads like LeBron James and Stephen Curry advance in age.

“I want to prove that I’m a winner. Simple as that. I want to win with coach. I want to win with my teammates. The ultimate goal is to win a championship,” he said per FoxNews. “I feel like that’s what we’re all striving for. Like [Pelicans GM David Griffin] said, we’re hungry. Y’all saw this past year what the team did. I’m just excited to add to that.”

"The ultimate goal is to win a championship." pic.twitter.com/aLYyoJA9pi

— New Orleans Pelicans (@PelicansNBA) July 6, 2022

After he signed his deal, Williamson said that he wanted to prove he was a “winner” and that he wanted to do it in New Orleans. He also thanked the Pelicans organization for betting and believing in him during a tumultuous season when many outside New Orleans questioned his durability and constantly raised the notion that Williamson wanted to leave for greener pasture.

“Thank y’all for really sticking with me the past year. It was a tough year, and then for the Pelicans to come give this birthday gift, I’m not going to let ’em down. I’m not going to let the city down, I’m not going to let my family down, and most of all, I’m not going to let myself down,” he said.

Above all, and as aforementioned, Williamson seems to be locked in with the Pelicans and has made it publicly clear that he wants to maximize his opportunities with the only franchise he’s ever known. The most important thing to take away is that Williamson will be with the Pelicans until 2028, when he’s 28-years-old.

“The last few months were a roller-coaster of emotions. The world just ran with narratives, and so when my family was going out in public, they’re getting harassed by people about why we don’t like New Orleans or why we don’t want to be here when that’s not the case at all,” he said.

“I wasn’t able to play because my foot was broke. Every time I checked my phone, it’s always something negative. Even when you’re trying to make positive of the situation, it was very tough.”

Through the 85 games Williamson has played, he has averaged 25.7 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 3.2 assists per game. The last time he was healthy., Williamson averaged 27.0 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 3.7 assists per game on 61.1 percent shooting from the field during his first All-Star campaign.

The post Zion Williamson on Signing Extension: ‘Ultimate Goal Is to Win a Championship’ appeared first on SLAM.

Williamson said after the season ended, “I couldn’t sign it fast enough.” Indeed, the All-Star locks in commitment to New Orleans.

The deal is expected to include protections that both sides were sorting through overnight and will finalize, sources said. https://t.co/n0hyRwRk9e

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 1, 2022

Williamson’s deal will be for five years and will last through the 2027-28 season.

When Williamson was asked about signing an extension with New Orleans following the Pelicans’ first-round loss to the Phoenix Suns, the 2021 All-Star said that he “couldn’t sign it fast enough.”

Injuries have plagued Williamson’s career during his young career, but when he’s been healthy, he’s been an All-Star, averaging 27.0 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 3.7 assists per game on 61.1 percent shooting from the field.

The post REPORT: Zion Williamson Set to Sign Max Extension With Pelicans appeared first on SLAM.

Take Flight @ZionWilliamson | #Pelicans pic.twitter.com/SSPhYaj9AG

— New Orleans Pelicans (@PelicansNBA) June 13, 2022

Talking to New Orleans media on Saturday, Williamson spoke with reporters about his current situation.

“I do want to be here. That’s no secret. I feel like I’ve stood on that when I spoke,” Williamson said via ESPN. “Currently, this does not really have anything to do with that. This is just me wanting to be a pillar in my community.”

Williamson is eligible to sign a five-year, $186 million rookie extension with the Pelicans this coming offseason. He said he would sign the extension as quickly as possible to remain with the team.

Zion on the Pelicans playoff run pic.twitter.com/90EtyX0vJV

— New Orleans Pelicans (@PelicansNBA) June 11, 2022

Given the current state of the roster, New Orleans is on an upward trajectory following the success of the last playoffs. They pushed the top-seeded Phoenix Suns to six games under first-year Coach Willie Green. With a core of CJ McCollum, Herb Jones, Trey Murphy, and Brandon Ingram, New Orleans has a roster that can go to the next level if Williamson re-signs.

“It sucked watching from the sideline, but I got to see our potential,” he said via CBS. “We’ve got a lot of great pieces, and I’m excited to get on the court with those guys — You saw it on the court. We have a special group. I truly believe that — I’m one of those people that believes the more your team wins, the more individual awards will come. So, with a special group, a coach like Willie [Green], I think a lot of great things will happen.”

The post Zion Williamson on Signing Extension: ‘I Want to Be Here’ appeared first on SLAM.

However, with just a few weeks left in the season, Williamson is taking a step closer to a full return to the team.

According to The Athletic’s Shams Charania, Williamson is set to join the Pelicans for their entire multi-game road trip to the west coast, the first time he’s joined the team for such an occasion all season.

As Charania noted, there is still no timetable for Williamson’s return, but he calls the road trip with the team “steps in the right direction.”

The road trip Williamson is a part of will feature games against the Portland Trail Blazers, Los Angeles Lakers, Los Angeles Clippers, and Sacramento Kings. Williamson was also cleared to progress in basketball activities by the Pelicans earlier this month.

However, it’s appearing increasingly unlikely that Williamson will play at all for the Pelicans this season. New Orleans only has seven games remaining this season, with the team’s last regular-season match scheduled to take place on Sunday, April 10, against the Golden State Warriors.

A potential playoff run could give Williamson more time to return to action, but that would require the Pelicans to win a play-in game, as they currently sit ninth in the Western Conference with a record 32-43, but just one game ahead of the 11-seed Lakers.

The first game of the Pelicans’ road trip against the Blazers (27-48) will take place on Wednesday at 10:00 p.m. EST.

The post REPORT: Zion Williamson to Join Pelicans on Four Day Road Trip appeared first on SLAM.

The news comes after a long year of rehab for the former No. 1 pick out of Duke. Williamson reportedly underwent surgery to repair a fractured foot. He was on a good pace in his recovery after being cleared for full team activities in November, but that quickly hit a snag when he suffered a setback that required an injection into his surgically repaired foot to help it heal.

Williamson then decided to rehab away from his team in New Orleans, continuing his rehab process in Portland with a blessing from the Pelicans. Earlier this month, the Pelicans announced the viral basketball sensation could resume basketball activities, but this most recent news puts a damper on many hopes for the season. Since then, Williamson has been doing stationary shooting and has been able to put weight on his injured foot.

Only 11 games remain on the schedule, so the probability of Zion Williamson returning after ramping up is slim. However, Williamson has been an active part of the team, cheering on his teammates from the sideline while gradually going through some basketball activities. The Pelicans (30-41) have climbed back into the play-in tournament as the ninth seed. Their next game is a Monday night affair with the Hornets (36-35).

The post REPORT: Zion Williamson Not Expected to Play This Season appeared first on SLAM.

Pelicans say Zion Williamson's foot is showing improved bone healing. He will now progress to full weight-bearing exercises and basketball activities.

— Andrew Lopez (@_Andrew_Lopez) March 2, 2022

Williamson was set to ramp up his rehab in November after being cleared for full-contact drills. However, he suffered a setback in his recovery in December that took away all his progress and forced him to sit out 4-6 weeks.

Since Pelicans GM David Griffin announced at Media Day that Williamson suffered a fractured foot over the offseason, the former No. 1 pick of the 2019 NBA Draft hasn’t logged any time on an NBA arena this season. With 21 games remaining in the year, it’s unknown if the 2021 All-Star will get to play at all this season. At 25-36 and fighting for a spot in the play-in tournament, the Pelicans could use Williamson.

They are tied with the Blazers for the final spot in the play-in, and both are just two games behind the Lakers for the ninth spot.

The post Pelicans Say Zion Williamson Can Participate in Basketball Activities appeared first on SLAM.

McCollum spoke again on Thursday after practice to defend his new teammate, saying Williamson is just taking time to rehab and that people need to “Leave the young fella alone.”

McCollum is a new arrival in New Orleans, getting sent south by the Portland Trail Blazers at the NBA’s trade deadline. The trade was a big one, as Larry Nance Jr. and Tony Snell joined McCollum in New Orleans. The Pelicans sent back Josh Hart, Tomas Satoransky, Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Didi Louzada, a 2022 first-round pick, and two future second-round picks.

Since joining the Pelicans, McCollum has put up tough numbers, averaging 28.4 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 5.4 assists per game in his first five outings for New Orleans. McCollum spent the first nine seasons of his career with the Blazers, putting up 19.0 points and 3.4 assists per game over his career.

Williamson has yet to join McCollum on the court, as he has spent the season out injured, recovering from a foot injury suffered during the preseason. In his brief appearances for New Orleans thus far, Williamson has been dynamic, averaging 25.7 points, 7.0 boards, and 3.2 dimes per game to go along with an All-Star appearance last season.

The Pelicans will need him back soon, too, as they make a final push for a play-in spot. New Orleans sits at 12th in the Western Conference with a 23-36 record.

The post CJ McCollum Backs Zion Williamson: ‘Leave the Young Fella Alone’ appeared first on SLAM.

Zion Williamson was supposed to return to practice in December, but he began experiencing soreness in his right foot, per https://t.co/VkatKRyY6a

“It is possible he will need a second surgery on his right foot, sources said, but nothing has been decided.” pic.twitter.com/CXDZDnmo6r

— NBA Central (@TheNBACentral) February 16, 2022

Williamson has reportedly been rehabbing his foot in Portland, Oregon. Back in November, he was cleared for full team activities, but his return was delayed in December due to soreness in his foot.

Last month, he admitted that the process has been “difficult” via an official team statement:

“As you can imagine, this has been a very difficult process for me. I know there’s work to be done in my recovery before I can safely return to the court, but I will continue to put in the time necessary so I can get back on the floor with my team and represent Pelicans fans and the city of New Orleans at the highest level. Basketball means everything to me, and I am thankful for the Pelicans organization and everyone who has surrounded me with love and support throughout this journey – my family, friends, teammates, coaches, staff, fans, and everybody who has stood behind me and uplifted me when I needed it most.”

The Pelicans, who are ranked No.11 in the West right now, will surely look forward to their franchise star’s return. Zion averaged 27.0 points 7.2 boards last season.

The post REPORT: Pelicans Zion Williamson May Need a Second Surgery on Right Foot appeared first on SLAM.

According to NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski, Williamson will be doing his rehabilitation in Portland, Ore. The Pelicans and Williamson agreed mutually on the All-Star working away from the team per ESPN. The worldwide leader in sports also arranged transportation for Williamson out of New Orleans.

The former no. 1 overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft made his first public comments about the injury in the statement the Pelicans released.

“As you can imagine, this has been a very difficult process for me,” Williamson said. “I know there’s work to be done in my recovery before I can safely return to the court, but I will continue to put in the time necessary so I can get back on the floor with my team and represent Pelicans fans and the city of New Orleans at the highest level.

“Basketball means everything to me, and I am thankful for the Pelicans organization and everyone who has surrounded me with love and support throughout this journey — my family, friends, teammates, coaches, staff, fans, and everybody who has stood behind me and uplifted me when I needed it most.”

The Pelicans announced on December 16 that Williamson received an injection in his injured foot to help facilitate bone healing. The Pelicans also revealed that Williamson traveled to Los Angeles to meet with Dr. Richard Ferkel, who helped perform the surgery on Williamson’s fractured foot and also gave him the injection.

Williamson has not played yet this season due to his foot injury. His return was delayed as he deals with soreness in his surgically repaired right foot that has delayed his return to the court.

The post Zion Williamson to Rehab Foot Injury Away From Pelicans appeared first on SLAM.

Williamson went to Los Angeles earlier this week to meet with Ferkel to get the injection.

It’s the hope that it’ll help with the bone healing in the foot. https://t.co/GrGm45BEWO

— Andrew Lopez (@_Andrew_Lopez) December 16, 2021

The Pelicans said in a statement that following a consultation and further evaluation from Dr. Richard Ferkel of the Southern California Orthopedic Institute on Wednesday, Williamson received a biologic injection into the fracture site to stimulate bone healing in his injured foot. He will be undergoing further imaging in four to six weeks and will be limited to low impact, partial weight-bearing activities for an undetermined amount of time as he recovers.

Williamson has yet to play this season after suffering a fractured foot injury over the summer that required surgery. Last season Williamson averaged 27.0 points, 7.2 boards, and 3.7 assists on the way to his first All-Star campaign.

The post Zion Williamson Out For 4-6 Weeks After Getting Injection on Foot Injury appeared first on SLAM.

According to Bleacher Report’s Jake Fischer, the Pelicans are expected to be buyers at this season’s trade deadline, not sellers.

“The New Orleans Pelicans, while awaiting Zion Williamson’s season debut, are still expected to be buyers ahead of the trade deadline, with an eye toward competing for the play-in tournament.”

Fischer goes on to report that one player potentially on the trade market is center Jaxson Hayes. Sources tell Fischer that Hayes is “considered available” by league sources.

Since being drafted eighth overall in the 2019 NBA Draft, Hayes has struggled to see the court for New Orleans over his three seasons, averaging 15.8 minutes, 7.2 points, and 4.0 rebounds per game over his career.

Hayes has even seen a dip in his minutes this season, dropping from 16.1 minutes per game last season to 11.7 minutes per game this season.

Regardless of what the Pelicans decide to do in the trade market, the future of their season is mainly in the hands of Zion Williamson, who has yet to see the court for New Orleans this season. Williamson has been recovering from a foot injury suffered during the offseason, and the All-Star has seen his rehab process be delayed throughout the start of the season.

The post REPORT: Pelicans Expected to be Buyers in NBA Trade Market appeared first on SLAM.

Late last month, the Pelicans announced that Williamson has been cleared to participate in full team activities. However, it appears he’s hit another setback. 

As first reported by Shams Charania of The Athletic, Williamson continues to experience soreness in his right foot and will likely be shut down from basketball activities for the time being.

After having surgery this offseason, Williamson’s foot hasn’t healed the way they wanted it to. 

The Pelicans released a medical update with more information on the latest setback. 

“After experiencing persistent soreness in his right foot, Zion Williamson underwent medical imaging which showed a regression in the bone healing of his fifth metatarsal. As a result, the volume and intensity of his training will be reduced for an extended period to help allow for further bone healing. Additional updates will be provided as warranted.”

Williamson is one of the most talented young players in the NBA. Last season, he made the NBA All-Star team while averaging 27.0 points, 7.2 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game.

The post REPORT: Zion Williamson Faces Another Injury Setback appeared first on SLAM.

Pelicans’ Zion Williamson experienced a slight delay in his rehab due to soreness in his injured right foot. Team is optimistic it is not serious but will dial back his ramp up in approximately a week.

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) December 2, 2021

Williamson, 21, was medically cleared for full basketball activities Monday. It will take some time for him to get back to the point he was at when he was first cleared for the whole gambit of basketball activity he was participating in.

The Pelicans don’t view this as a serious setback, according to reporting from The Athletic, but the star forward will be ramping down his rehab process and won’t be doing any contact work during the Pelicans’ upcoming road trip. Further reporting from The Athletic revealed that the Pelicans experienced soreness the morning after a workout.

The team is being cautious due to the history of athletes being re-injured recovering from a foot injury per The Athletic and doesn’t plan on examining the foot as of this moment.

The third-year forward has averaged 25.7 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 3.2 assists in 85 career games.

The post Zion Williamson Hits Setback in Rehab From A Fractured Foot appeared first on SLAM.

With that in mind, they’ve been without their superstar forward Zion Williamson for the entire season. He’s been recovering from a fractured right foot, with the team being overly cautious with their franchise cornerstone to this point. 

Over the weekend, the Pelicans announced that Williamson has been cleared to participate in full team activities.

While this doesn’t mean he’s quite ready to take the floor in games, it is a step in the right direction. 

Upon his return, New Orleans isn’t expected to become a playoff caliber team. However, they should be better than they are now, as Williamson is one of the best young players in the NBA. 

Last season, he made the NBA All-Star team while averaging 27.0 points, 7.2 rebounds and 3.7 assists per contest. With the talent to become the face of the league down the road, the Pelicans should play the long game in bringing him back to action. 

The post Pelicans Star Zion Williamson Cleared for Full Team Activities appeared first on SLAM.

According to ESPN’s Andrew Lopez, Pelicans star forward Zion Williamson has been cleared for contact drills and will start with 1-on-1 workouts.

Lopez also reports that Williamson will be evaluated to see if he can return to full-team workouts on Nov. 24. No decisions will be made about a timetable to return to games until Nov. 24 as well.

However, on Monday, it was reported by ESPN’s Brian Windhorst that Williamson is not expected to return any time soon.

Williamson has missed every game so far this year for the Pelicans as he is rehabbing from a fractured right foot.

The Pelicans need Williamson back fast, as the start of the season has been a disaster for New Orleans. The Pelicans currently hold the second-worst record in the League at 2-13, beating out only the 1-13 Houston Rockets.

Williamson has had a high-level impact for New Orleans in his two seasons thus far, averaging 25.7 points and 7.0 rebounds per game. Williamson was also named an All-Star last season and was a member of the 2019-20 All-Rookie team.

The post REPORT: Zion Williamson Cleared for Contact Drills appeared first on SLAM.

As the team takes things slow with Williamson, he is set to have another set of scans done in the coming weeks to get a pulse check on when he could return to the court healthy.

ESPN’s Brian Windhorst recently gave an update on Williamson, talking about how hard he is working to get back to helping the Pelicans win games. However, he mentioned that Williamson is still “weeks away” from getting back into full practices. 

With that in mind, Williamson may not be returning to game action until late December or early in 2022. He’ll need time in practice getting back in game shape and mesh with his teammates before being thrown back into games. 

Already in his third NBA season, Williamson has only played in 85 games, but has averaged 25.7 points, 7.0 rebounds and 3.2 assists per contest. 

The Pelicans have the second worst record in the entire NBA at 2-12, meaning this season may already be lost. As good as Williamson is, he likely won’t be able to turn this team around to the point where they’re in the hunt for the playoffs.

The post REPORT: Zion Williamson Still Not Close to Returning appeared first on SLAM.

Pelicans general manager David Griffin said to ESPN’s Andrew Lopez on Thursday that All-Star forward Zion Williamson would miss the first few weeks of the NBA season.

Griffin also said that there is currently no timetable for a potential Williamson return but will be re-evaluated in two to two and a half weeks.

Williamson’s foot injury was one acquired during the offseason, Griffin said on media day.

Williamson’s absence will be a big blow to the Pelicans, as his production will be difficult to replace. Last season, in just his second season in the NBA, Williamson averaged a monstrous 27.0 points, 7.2 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game on his way to being named an All-Star.

The Pelicans will need veterans like Brandon Ingram and Jonas Valanciunas to fill in the gaps and will need a younger player like Kira Lewis Jr. or Nickeil Alexander-Walker to take a step up.

New Orleans will officially begin its season on Wednesday, Oct. 20, at home against the Philadelphia 76ers. Using Griffin’s window of two to two and a half weeks, the earliest Williamson could return is sometime in the next five to seven games, assuming his re-evaluation goes well and he’s cleared to play, but he’s likely to miss more time than that.

The post Zion Williamson to Miss Start of Season Due to Foot Injury appeared first on SLAM.

Green spent 12 years in the NBA, playing for four different teams (including New Orleans) after spending his first seven seasons with the Philadelphia 76ers. His last playing season was in 2014-15 and he’s served as an assistant coach in the NBA since 2016, spending three years with the Golden State Warriors before joining the Phoenix Suns in 2019.

One of Monty Williams’ most valued assistants, Green helped Phoenix finish second in the Western Conference this season, winding up just two wins shy of winning an NBA championship.

In fact, the Suns’ run to the 2021 NBA Finals is the reason for his delayed announcement of his hiring, per ESPN’s Andrew Lopez.

Viewed as both highly knowledgeable and affable, Green will be responsible for the development of one of the most young exciting players in the NBA (2019 first overall pick, Zion Williamson), which may even take precedence over the teams win-loss record.

Green will also be tasked with the development rest of Pelicans’ sizable stable of young talent, including Jaxson Hayes, Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Kira Lewis Jr.; a reported sticking point with former Pelicans head coach Stan Van Gundy.

The post Pelicans Officially Hire Willie Green as Head Coach appeared first on SLAM.

The Zion subject came up when he was questioned about reports that Williamson’s family was unhappy with his coaching and if it played a factor in his exit. The former coach answered the question from his view.

“I don’t know anything about that,” Van Gundy said. “In my mind, I liked coaching Zion. I had a good relationship with him. I had no problem. I think we elevated his platform that we gave him. We put him in different situations, had him handling the ball a lot, playing a lot of point guard. I think we did some good things with him.

“If they were unhappy, I didn’t hear about it. Zion was unhappy with us not winning more games, but Zion never expressed to me any of that. That doesn’t mean he wasn’t unhappy, it’s possible that they were unhappy with me and that’s what led to the change.”

Instead Van Gundy focused on the philosophical differences between him and David Griffin as the issue, even down to the “mutual split” announced to the media.

Pelicans Executive Vice President of basketball operations David Griffin shared with reporters the “philosophical differences” between the team and their coach. Van Gundy on the other hand, said that offseason meetings between himself and Griffin made it clear that the two were not on the same page.

“We just looked at coaching totally different,” Van Gundy said, via ESPN. “That became probably a little bit during the season but certainly after the season. We were on two totally different pages. Who’s right and who’s wrong is up to anybody’s individual perspective, but we certainly did not see things the same way.”

Despite the team’s improvement on defense after the All-Star break, injuries to Zion and others affected the offense and doomed the Pelicans play-in tournament chances finishing with a 31-41 record.

The post Stan Van Gundy Doesn’t Blame Zion Williamson For Firing appeared first on SLAM.

According to ESPN, Williamson underwent a CT scan on Thursday that revealed the injury. His treatment and return will be determined based on evaluation.

Pelicans Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations, David Griffin criticized the NBA for how his superstar has been officiated.

“I’m really frustrated because this was avoidable,” Griffin says, via NBA.com. “We told the NBA through every means available to us, through sending in film, through speaking to everybody in the officials department, everybody in basketball operations, that the way they were officiating Zion was going to get him injured. Quite frankly, he’s injured now because of the open season that there’s been on Zion Williamson in the paint. He’s been absolutely mauled in the paint on a regular basis to the point other players have said to him (they will) keep doing this to you because they don’t call it.”

However, Griffin believes that the injury could have happened over time, rather than from one specific incident, adding:

“I believe he probably suffered the injury over a period of time,” Griffin said. “It’s a striking injury. It’s a blunt-force injury. He was being beaten on the hand over and over and over again. For me to tell you one time, I don’t think I can do that. I don’t think he knows one time.

Griffin’s overflow of frustrations could be about recent matchups. During the final few seconds of the recent 114-112 loss to the Denver Nuggets, Nikola Jokic appeared to slap Williamson on the wrist as the Pelicans standout attacked the basket for a dunk. No call was made.

Ummmm … pic.twitter.com/yDPT7L4SNa

— Bally Sports New Orleans (@BallySportsNO) April 29, 2021

The next day, the NBA admitted that Jokic should have been called for fouling Williamson. Head coach Stan Van Gundy weighed in on the treatment the referees give to Williamson:

“He certainly takes a lot of hits. We’ve been on the referees hard. I know I have been every game,” Van Gundy says, via ESPN. “I get the response that, ‘Well, how many free throws has he shot?’ and my response is always, ‘Not enough.’

The 20-year-old forward is averaging 27 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 3.7 assists in 61 games this season. The Pelicans are 2½ games out of the last play-in spot behind the San Antonio Spurs, with five games left in the season.

The post Zion Williamson Fractures Finger, Pelicans Call Out Officiating appeared first on SLAM.

In what was a controversial no-call, many members of the Pelicans thought Williamson was fouled on this last-second shot attempt. In fact, Williamson himself commented on this postgame to Will Guillory of The Athletic and other media members, discussing the foul call scenario.

“I’ve got to earn my respect. I’m only in Year 2. I’ve got to get a couple more years under my belt, and hopefully, things change with that.”

This is certainly a real thing in the NBA, as the top offensive players in the league are known for getting superstar treatment. As you become a better player, it seems you get more foul calls on the offensive floor. Nonetheless, Williamson recognizes that even though he’s one of the best players the league, he will only continue to get more crucial foul calls as his career goes on.

The post Zion Williamson Reflects On Getting Crucial Foul Calls appeared first on SLAM.

In addition to those, 20 limited-edition Gold and Gold Autographed cover NFTs and Gold Autographed digital basketballs will be auctioned with staggered end times throughout Sunday, April 4, culminating with the exclusive 1-of-1 Platinum Autographed collectible editions.

To participate in the auction, you will need to set up a MetaMask Wallet and an OpenSea Account. In order to bid you must pay using Ethereum, the auction will not accept credit cards.

To learn how to open an ETH wallet and participate in this NFT drop, hit up the OpenSea FAQ.

To learn more about purchasing NFTs on OpenSea, click HERE. Video instructions detailing how to set up your MetaMask Wallet are available HERE. For full auction terms and conditions, please click HERE.

————

Zion Williamson: SLAM Future Issue

Zion’s SLAM 222 Future Issue cover is available now in Basic (500 total), Gold (20), Gold Autographed (20) and a 1-of-1 Platinum Autographed edition. The Basic version will be sold for 0.2 ETH, while the others will be sold auction-style, with the bidding ending this Sunday.

Zion Williamson: SLAM 228

Zion’s SLAM 228 cover is available now in Basic (500 total), Gold (20), Gold Autographed (20) and a 1-of-1 Platinum Autographed edition. The Basic version will be sold for 0.2 ETH, while the others will be sold auction-style, with the bidding ending this Sunday.

ZION x SLAM: The Future

This collection of digital basketballs is inspired by Zion’s Future Issue cover and created exclusively for this drop. These are available now in Basic (500 total), Gold (20), Gold Autographed (20), and a 1-of-1 Platinum Autographed Edition. The Basic version will be sold for 0.2 ETH, while the others will be sold auction-style, with the bidding ending this Sunday.

Basketball NFTs can be viewed virtually in 3D in RareRooms (www.rarerooms.io). Owning a basketball unlocks a SLAM-inspired room – wallpapered with SLAM covers over its 27-year history.

Demo the room here.

The post SLAM x ZION NFT Collection: Available NOW on OpenSea appeared first on SLAM.

“I’m really excited to partner with SLAM for the first-ever NFT cover and digital basketballs,” said Williamson. “Through this drop, we hope to deepen our connection with basketball fans, while creating a unique opportunity for them to get in on the action and own a piece of history.”

The first cover, SLAM 222, was shot at Duke University in April 2018 immediately before Williamson declared for the NBA Draft, while the second, SLAM 228, was shot in New Orleans in June 2020 before the season restarted in Orlando.

“SLAM has been covering Zion since he was in high school, so it’s an honor to partner with him on this project,” said Adam Figman, Chief Content Officer at SLAM. “Our audience has a strong emotional connection to our many covers and collect them in their physical form, especially the ones with Zion, so turning two of those covers into digital collectibles that fans can own made perfect sense.”

Leading sports agency CAA Sports facilitated the partnership on behalf of its client Williamson, alongside JDS Sports, parent company of SLAM, and other ventures across sports and technology. Award-winning digital agency Victory Creative Group assisted with the artwork for the NFTs, and GigLabs was tapped for operational support.

The SLAM x ZION collection drops on OpenSea, the largest NFT marketplace beginning April 2, with up to 500 editions of each Basic version of the cover NFTs and 50 Basic version digital basketballs available to purchase on a first-come, first-served for 0.2 ETH, while 20 limited-edition Gold and Gold Autographed cover NFTs and Gold Autographed digital basketballs will be auctioned with staggered end times throughout Sunday, April 4, culminating with the exclusive 1-of-1 Platinum Autographed collectible editions.

————

Zion Williamson: SLAM Future Issue

Zion’s SLAM 222 Future Issue cover will be available in Basic (500 total), Gold (20), Gold Autographed (20) and a 1-of-1 Platinum Autographed edition. The Basic version will be sold for 0.2 ETH, while the others will be sold auction-style, with the bidding ending this Sunday.

————

Zion Williamson: SLAM 228

Zion’s SLAM 228 cover will be available in Basic (500 total), Gold (20), Gold Autographed (20) and a 1-of-1 Platinum Autographed edition. The Basic version will be sold for 0.2 ETH, while the others will be sold auction-style, with the bidding ending this Sunday.

————

SLAM x ZION DIGITAL BASKETBALL

The drop will also feature a collection of digital basketballs inspired by Zion’s Future Issue cover and created exclusively for this drop. These will be available in Basic (500 total), Gold (20), Gold Autographed (20), and a 1-of-1 Platinum Autographed Edition. The Basic version will be sold for 0.2 ETH, while the others will be sold auction-style, with the bidding ending this Sunday.

————

HOW TO BUY

You will need to set up a MetaMask Wallet and an OpenSea Account to participate in the auction. In order to bid you must pay using Ethereum, the auction will not accept credit cards.

To learn how to open an ETH wallet and participate in this NFT drop, hit up the OpenSea FAQ.

To learn more about purchasing NFTs on OpenSea, click HERE. Video instructions detailing how to set up your MetaMask Wallet are available HERE. For full auction terms and conditions, please click HERE.

The post SLAM x ZION Exclusive NFT Collection Available April 2 on OpenSea appeared first on SLAM.

NBA Rooks on ESPN+ gave us a behind-the-scenes look at the phenomenon that is Zion Williamson. But for Zion, the fanfare was at an all-time high before he even stepped foot on an NBA court. Go back and rewatch a clip of a Zion Williamson dunk. Now, watch it another time and look closely at the faces of everyone in the crowd. Pay attention to the looks of astonishment, all the wide-eyes, the jaws that drop, the excitement that takes over some people, who without even realizing it, find themselves jumping with him. If reactions are caused by two forces colliding, then this is the Zion effect every time he collides with the rim. It’s this act of athleticism and power that has propelled him to become one of the most electrifying players of this generation. 

Looking back, Zion was destined for legacy the minute he went viral at the age of fifteen for a posterizing dunk that caught the attention of the world (go back and watch that video, too). It’s one thing to see someone so young play with that much athleticism and talent, it’s another to watch them get bigger, stronger, jump higher and, amidst doubts, prove the hype to be true. 

Throughout his high school career at Spartanburg, Zion exceeded expectations. The fifteen year old phenom went on to average 36.8 points, 13 rebounds, 3 steals, and 2.5 blocks per game as a junior, proving that there was efficiency amongst the power. He finished 42 points and 16 rebounds against Cardinal Newman High School, and dropped 50 points in a win against Proviso East High School. Steph Curry caught notice of his game, and Drake wore his jersey in a picture he posted on the ‘gram. 

And with the hype, and the numbers, came the inevitable comparisons. Questions of, could he be the next—? That summer, we put the phenom on the cover of SLAM 210, and even expressed our own curiosity about whether we had seen a player like him before: He’s a lefty with the handles of a point guard and the dunking ability of…well, nobody that’s come along yet. Maybe Vince Carter? Dr. J? Dominique Wilkins? A slightly less springy, definitively more powerful version of Zach LaVine? It’s tough to put into context something that is arriving for the first time.

Yet, it’s fair to say that Zion became his own entity once took his talents to Durham, North Carolina for his freshman season at Duke. Some saw the next so-and-so, while Zion showed the world that he was more than just a high school phenom and must-see dunker. 

He proved his playmaking ability as a tremendous finisher around the rim and passer; proving he had a high basketball IQ amongst the power. He was a scary sight on the defensive end of the floor with his ability to block shots and rebound with so much ease, no one else stood a chance. That season, Zion racked up ACC Player of the Week and Freshman of the Week awards on a nearly-consistent weekly basis, and broke records previously held by former Duke freshman, from Marvin Bagley’s scoring record (which he and Barett both set), to a single game points-record that was held by both Bagley and J.J. 

His performances that season had every hoop fan excited about what he’d do next in the League. In a game against Clemson, Zion’s 360 dunk even had legendary ESPN announcer Dick Vitale feelin’ ready for the dunk contest. 

“OHH, OHH, ARE YOU SERIOUS? SLAM, BAM, JAM. GET HIM READY FOR THE NBA DUNK CONTEST,” said Vitale.

Yet, a Grade 1 knee sprain against North Carolina ignited a different type of chatter. Opinions flared over whether he should continue playing, or just sit out the rest of the season. 

When he did return in March for the quarterfinals of the ACC tournament, Zion hooped with a vengeance. He dropped 29 points in a win against Syracuse, shooting a perfect 13-of-13 from the field. Then, he scored 31 points in a win over North Carolina, and another 21 against Florida State. He became the sixth Duke Freshman to win ACC Tournament MVP. 

While Duke ended up losing to Michigan State in the Elite 8, Zion would take his talents to the biggest stage yet. After getting selected as the No.1 pick by the Pelicans, it didn’t take long for him to start adding to his own NBA highlight reel: in his summer league debut on ESPN, with Lebron James in attendance, he showcased the very same power and athleticism that caught the world’s amazement when he ripped the ball right out of Knox’s hands and finished with a massive dunk. Then, the news broke that he had suffered a bruised left knee injury, only played for nine minutes before suffering a bruised left knee injury. Critics chimed in about his body and whether he was injury-prone: they brought up his injury at Duke, and the knee bruise he had in high school. 

When you’re a once-in-a-generation type of player, you tend to cause a lot of conversation. 

“I did hear those things,” Zion admitted to SLAM going into the Orlando Bubble. “My mom taught me to accept the things I cannot change, and to change the things I can and move on. So, I can’t tell them what they can think or they can’t think. Not everybody is going to agree with what you do or like my body make-up or how you play the game. It’s their opinion and that’s fine. I’m my own person. So, when it comes to worrying about things like that, I don’t.”

You can’t control the past, but you can decide what kind of future you want. Before he’d become an NBA All-Star and average career-highs this season, Zion, in his own words, made it clear that if we wanted to see what he’d do next, we would just have to tune in. 

—

 Stream NBA Rooks exclusively on ESPN+.

Follow the journeys of Zion Williamson, Ja Morant, RJ Barrett and more as they begin their pro careers on NBA Rooks, exclusively on ESPN+.

The post Zion Williamson Hasn’t Stopped Ascending appeared first on SLAM.

Of course, having Brandon Ingram (2019-20’s Most Improved Player award winner) and Lonzo Ball (the 2017 NBA Draft’s second overall pick) does plenty to aid the Pelicans in their pursuit of being a perennial playoff contender.

However, sitting at 15-19, New Orleans is just 11th in the Western Conference standings and running out of time to work out their kinks with the second half of this season’ schedule just around the corner. Consequently, nobody can blame the Pels for getting antsy as they search for ways to capitalize on their current crop of talent.

The Pelicans are trying to determine the heights the franchise can reach with Zion leading the way to the mountaintop, and rightfully so.

According to Bleacher Report’s Jake Fischer, Pelicans veteran guard J.J. Redick and Eric Bledsoe “appear very much available, league sources said.”

Redick, though valued for his playoff experience, is no longer a player that New Orleans can trust defensively. In fact, Fisher reports that the Pelicans — namely former head coach Alvin Gentry — wanted to move on from the combo guard last season.

Now, New Orleans is “just trying to do right by [Redick],” hoping to trade him to a team that’s closer to his family in Brooklyn.

Bledsoe’s play has declined steadily over the past four seasons, with the 31-year-old’s looking a long way from the two-time All-Defensive selection that he is. Trading him — like Redick — would increase the opportunities for guards Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Kira Lewis Jr., two players who can make a significant impact defensively and who fit the franchise’s youth movement.

The post Pelicans Looking to Move J.J. Redick, Eric Bledsoe Ahead of Trade Deadline appeared first on SLAM.

His co-star teammate, Brandon Ingram, has taken notice of just how special he is. After Williamson became the fourth-youngest NBA All-Star in history, at just 20 years old, Ingram spoke to Eliot Clough of Pelicans Plus and the rest of Pelicans media to discuss this accomplishment. 

“I’ve never played with a player as talented as me. He’s a generational talent.”

This is high praise from Ingram, who has played with some of the world’s best talent at all levels throughout the course of his basketball career. 

According to Elias Sports Bureau, Williamson is just the 5th player in the shot-clock era to average 25 points per game while shooting .600 from the floor through his first 30 games of a season. He is the first since Charles Barkley in 1987-88.

In his second NBA season, Williamson is averaging an efficient 25.6 points and 6.8 rebounds per game. While this was never in question, the New Orleans Pelicans made the right choice taking him first overall. 

The post Brandon Ingram On Zion Williamson: ‘I’ve Never Played With A Player As Talented As Me’ appeared first on SLAM.

These 14 reserves will join the starters (10 in total) that were named last week — a list headlined by team captains LeBron James and Kevin Durant (of the Los Angeles Lakers and Brooklyn Nets, respectively).

Phoenix Suns point guard Chris Paul leads the way in All-Star appearances among this group, playing in his 11^th All-Star Game this year. Paul is only one of three players in this year’s event with at least 10 All-Star appearances, the other two being LeBron and Durant.

Brooklyn Nets guard James Harden has the next highest mark among the reserves. The Beard is playing his ninth All-Star game but his first representing the Eastern Conference thanks his well-publicized trade from the Houston Rockets.

Harden is one of three Nets in the All-Star Game alongside starters Durant and Irving.

Los Angeles Lakers big man Anthony Davis is an All-Star for not just the eighth time in his career but the eighth time in a row. Davis has been an All-Star every season of his career, with the only exception being his rookie season in 2012-13.

Another veteran of the All-Star Game, Los Angeles Clippers wing Paul George, makes his return to the All-Star Game for the seventh time after missing last year’s festivities.

Right behind him, Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard finds himself in his sixth All-Star Game.

Dame Dolla has the highest scoring average of the All-Star reserves, averaging 29.6 points per game, the fourth-highest number in the league. Lillard will also participate in the All-Star 3-Point Contest.

On the flip side, Philadelphia 76ers guard Ben Simmons is averaging just 15.7 points per game but is making his third All-Star Game because of his excellent playmaking – 7.9 assists per game – and defense for the Sixers.

Nikola Vucevic, Rudy Gobert, Donovan Mitchell and Jayson Tatum will all be making their second appearances.

Four players from the reserves will be playing in their first-ever All-Star Games. Julius Randle, Zach LaVine, Jaylen Brown and Zion Williamson will make their first All-Star appearances.

The post NBA Announces 2021 All-Star Game Reserves appeared first on SLAM.

According to Andrew Lopez of ESPN, this won’t be a problem him season, as Williamson recently told the media ‘there are no restrictions’ on his minutes for the 2020-21 season. 

“I think it definitely will be different because, well, it was tough, man,” Williamson said. “When you’re going through rehab and when you’re finally able to step on the court, three minutes goes by, four minutes by and … you gotta get subbed out. It was a lot.”

“I tried to make the most of the situation and I think I did the best that I possibly could. But it’s going to be a lot different.”

Although he only played 27.8 minutes per game, Williamson was second on the Pelicans when it came to scoring—as a rookie. He averaged 22.5 points per contest while shooting .429 from beyond the arc.

Playing in just 24 games last season due to injury concerns, it seems we should (finally) get to see a full season of Williamson without any restrictions. He’s ready to show just what kind of player he is.

“I want to show that I’m a basketball player,” he said. “I’ll do whatever the team needs me to do on offense or defense no matter what it is to win. I’m just a competitor.”

“When I’m healthy and competing, I’m just a different kind of player. I think that’s the player everyone fell in love with.”

The No. 1 overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft will look to lead the Pelicans to a playoff appearance alongside teammate Brandon Ingram.

The post Zion Williamson On Upcoming Season: ‘There Are No Restrictions’ appeared first on SLAM.

After podcast host Matt Barnes asked if there was any ceiling for Zion, the first overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, the consistently candid Redick gushed over the Carolina native:

“It’s All-NBA, All-Star, Hall of Fame. That’s his ceiling.

The thing with Zion is that he is naturally — obviously athletic — but naturally skilled. So when he learns, sort of, how to play the NBA game and think the NBA game, he’s gonna dominate. He does it naturally without really putting the thought and preparation we all learned.”

Williamson, heralded as a generational talent before he ever stepped on an NBA floor, has made shockwaves across the league because of his extraordinary athleticism, high basketball IQ and his surprising skill level.

He missed multiple weeks at the start of the 2019-20 season after undergoing surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his right knee but once he was on the court, he appeared to be every bit as dominant as people dreamed he would be.

In 24 games, Zion averaged 22.5 points, 6.3 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 0.7 steals in 27.8 minutes per game, shooting .583 from the field and .429 from three-point range. Although he only played a third of the 2019-20 season, his scoring and rebounding averages rank first among all rookies.

All that from a 20-year-old that’s still learning the ropes.

“This guy at Year 5 or Year 6,” wonders Redick. “What are looking at right now?”

The post Pels Teammate Says Zion Williamson Has Hall of Fame Potential appeared first on SLAM.

The SUV pulls up to the back entrance of a nondescript industrial-looking building in the Warehouse District of New Orleans. It’s the last Sunday of June and the downtown streets in The Big Easy are calm and quiet as the car drives up to the discreet door in the back of the building. Although the building is empty, there is no room for error when the city’s biggest star—and quickly rising as one of the main faces of the NBA—is pulling up to an unfamiliar location.

When the car doors open, though, the vibe changes completely. The necessary pre-arrival safety measures and planning is a far contrast to the feeling that suddenly takes over the building. Zion Williamson, sporting his trademark ear-to-ear smile, and accompanied by his family, arrives to his cover shoot with the same happy aura he’s had since his first SLAM cover shoot back in Spartanburg, SC, in 2017, when he was just a 16-year-old phenom with a plethora of “could he” questions around his name.

While a lot has changed since, the foundation still remains the same. For Zion, it’s always been about letting his game do the talking on the court, while not looking to draw any unnecessary attention away from it. It’s why he arrives at the shoot with just his family, as he’s done at both of his previous solo SLAM cover shoots. There is no entourage or large group of friends rolling up with him. No team of publicists or handlers on set. No stylists with suitcases full of designer clothes for him to show off in front of the lenses.    

In an era when many professional athletes, and especially NBA players, are expected (and many pressured) to be Renaissance men by proving their versatility and star value off the court, Zion is a refreshing change by continuing to do things his way. He isn’t trying hard on social media—there aren’t any fit pics or photos of him in front of expensive cars, in plush homes or any other behind-the-scenes testaments to the luxury of being a star on his Instagram account. In fact, out of the 63 posts he has on his IG grid as of early-August, all of them are either basketball-related or brand commitment posts, with the exception of a handful where he is just shouting out close friends.

Many would refer to the aforementioned flashy posts as part of a player’s “brand building” strategy, but Zion has chosen to not partake in any of that extra stuff. And yet, he’s one of the most followed players in the NBA with an ever-growing list of endorsement deals—Jordan Brand, Gatorade, Mountain Dew and 2K Sports, to name a few—without doing any of it. His personality and on-court performance have done all the brand building needed.

Therefore, it is only fitting that Zion opted to go with a modest look for his first solo SLAM cover as a pro. The plain workout fit perfectly depicts his outlook at this stage in life—focused on continuing to shatter records and cement his status in the League. All that other stuff is irrelevant.

After Zion makes his way up to the fifth floor, the photographer engages in some small talk to get the vibes flowing. Making it challenging and strange is the fact that everyone on the production side is wearing masks, gloves and keeping their distance from Zion in an effort to follow all COVID-19 precautionary measures with the Pelicans star preparing to enter the Orlando bubble in a couple of weeks. The photographer begins throwing out questions in an attempt to get Zion to produce different facial expressions based on his answers. One of the questions is about Zion’s mindset heading into Orlando. He grins and then responds, “Like, the summer is mine!”

When Zion suffered a bruised left knee in his Summer League debut, which sidelined him for the remaining Las Vegas games, and then a torn right lateral meniscus during the preseason, which resulted in arthroscopic knee surgery and a three-month rehab process, the chatter on social media and in sports talk shows was rampant and as loud as ever. Folks (mostly critics) wanted to take the opportunity to bring up his injury history and cast doubt on his body’s composition. They brought up the famous knee sprain at Duke and even the deep knee bruise in high school. Zion was seemingly being written off by many before he even got a chance to start.

“I did hear those things,” he admits. “My mom taught me to accept the things I cannot change, and to change the things I can and move on. So, I can’t tell them what they can think or they can’t think. Not everybody is going to agree with what you do or like my body make-up or how you play the game. It’s their opinion and that’s fine. I’m my own person. So, when it comes to worrying about things like that, I don’t.”

Debates around whether Zion should redshirt his rookie season also grew louder. Ultimately, he returned, just as he did at Duke, despite many arguing that he shouldn’t risk stepping on the hardwood again until he secured the bag. In both cases, his love for the game was just too intense for him to ever consider sitting. And so, he made his NBA regular season debut on January 22, 2020, in not quite the ideal circumstances he dreamed of growing up—thrown into the fire in the middle of the season after knee surgery, with the whole world tuning in and ready to critique.

But then Zion happened.

He set Twitter on fire by the end of the night after having one of the most memorable debuts in pro sports. After scoring only 5 points in 12 minutes of play through the first three quarters, Zion had a historic fourth quarter: 17 consecutive points in a three-minute span, which included four three-pointers and chants of MVP from the crowd. The Pels ended up falling short that night, after Zion single-handedly brought the team back from a double-digit deficit to within 3 before getting subbed out due to strict minute restrictions.

“When it comes to the whole ‘all eyes are on me,’ I feel like a lot of eyes have been on me since high school, so that feeling was nothing new. I don’t consider it being thrown in the fire because I’ve been playing basketball my whole life. But it was definitely a dream come true to finally get thrown out there and enjoy the moment,” recalls Williamson. “If I’m being honest with you, it was very frustrating at first. I’m in the game and I feel like I could maybe change the outcome and you hear the horn go off. You know it ain’t for nobody but you because your time is up. It’s one of those sickening feelings, because I’m one of those players that if I could do anything to help my team win, I want to do it. So it was very frustrating at first from that perspective. But outside of that, it was a blast.”

It certainly didn’t feel like the Pelicans had lost that night. If anything, it was probably the biggest win they’ve had in a long time. The franchise witnessed a transcending, generational-type talent. It was real. It was no longer just hype.

GRAB YOUR COPY OF SLAM 228 FEATURING ZION

The 22-points-in-18-minutes debut shattered all kinds of records: most points per minute in an NBA debut in the shot-clock era (1954-55), most consecutive team points from a rookie in the fourth quarter over the last 20 seasons, first player in League history to shoot 4-4 or better from behind the arc in his NBA debut and most points in a player’s debut in Pelicans history are just some.

As far as record-breaking performances go, that was only the beginning. He became the first teenager in NBA history to have 10 consecutive 20-point outings. He ultimately extended that streak to 13—the previous record was nine games by Carmelo Anthony in the 2003-04 season. His 28 points on 13-20 shooting against the Warriors made him the first rookie since Michael Jordan to have four consecutive games of 25+ points on 57 percent or better shooting from the floor. He dropped 35 points against the Los Angeles Lakers to start March. Zion ended up averaging 23.6 points and 6.8 rebounds in 19 games before the pandemic brought everything to a halt.

More importantly, though, Zion’s insertion into the Pelicans lineup brought the team into the playoff conversation. After losing its first two games with Zion, the team went on to win eight out of their next 11. All of a sudden, the young Pels were in contention for the 8-seed, which seemed unthinkable just a couple of weeks earlier.

“No, I was not surprised at all, if I’m being honest, because I play the game to win,” he says. “I consider myself one of the best competitors. It’s as simple as that. I feel like I’m a competitor. I came back at the right time. The team—we were finding ourselves. And then I got added into the equation. It just fit and we won eight out of the next 11.”

One week into the restart in Orlando, the Pelicans find themselves 2 games behind the Grizzlies for the 8th spot in the West and just 1 game out of the 9th spot–as they try to force play-in games. All eyes have been on them. It’ll be a very tough but not impossible task for the young squad. It’s been one of the biggest headlines going into Disney—can the Pelicans get into the playoffs, setting up a highly desired matchup against LeBron James and the Lakers in the first round?

The expectations and excitement have been through the roof. So much so that NBA Twitter has resorted to conspiracy theories around an alleged desire for the League to have the Pelicans reach the playoffs. Oh, and then there were all the debates surrounding Zion’s chances at winning Rookie of the Year—a race that Zion doesn’t shy away from discussing.  

“I have social media but I don’t let social media dictate my life. I will never let that happen,” he says. “But as far as winning Rookie of the Year and competing in that race, I’m a competitor. If there’s a chance that I could win it, I’m going to go after it. I’m not going to doubt that. Ja [Morant] has had an incredible season and he is the current front-runner, but it’s not over until they announce who it is, so, I’m going to keep battling for it. [A few weeks after our shoot, the NBA announced that performance in Orlando would not be taken into consideration for the player awards.—Ed.] But my top priority is getting into the playoffs first.”

Four days after our shoot, a photo of Zion at the practice facility circulates around the web. It’s the first image of him in months. It quickly goes viral as fans and media alike are taken aback by his physique and how “ripped” he looks post-quarantine. Numbers get thrown around—like, losing 25 pounds of fat and adding 10 pounds of muscle during the shutdown. Wearing a mask, he draws Bane comparisons. It’s a recurring topic on sports talk shows for the next 48 hours. While many wondered how players would stay in shape with team facilities closed, Zion made it his mission.

“I was focused on honing my game and my body and getting back to full strength,” says Williamson, who was granted access by the League to the team facility (among other NBA players) to continue his rehab. “When people asked me during the season where do you think I am [health-wise], I probably said something like 80-85 [percent]. But working out the past few months, I was way off. I was probably at, like, 60 percent. When I say I feel like my old self, I mean like high school and college, in the sense of having fun with the game. Yeah, basketball is a business, but I love basketball. Whenever I play basketball with that love I’ve always had, I feel like I’m one of the best.”  

Regardless of what happens in Orlando, Zion isn’t shying away from the noise. He’s learned to embrace it all—the good, the bad, the weird. He’s welcoming the expectations bestowed upon him—the chatter that comes with the territory. He’s as confident as he’s ever been. And that’s the part that should scare opposing teams the most.

“We’re going to compete. We’re going to try to win,” says Williamson. “The combination of my love for the game and me being an ultimate competitor, and some of my teammates having the same traits, it’s a bright future. I feel like we’re going to do the best we could do and we’re going to compete.

“I don’t struggle to balance that at all. If you want to know what’s going to happen, tune in!”

—

GRAB YOUR COPY OF SLAM 228 FEATURING ZION

Franklyn Calle is a senior producer at SLAM. Follow him on Twitter @FrankieC7.

Portraits by Zach Wolfe.

The post New Orleans Pelicans Star Zion Williamson Covers SLAM 228 appeared first on SLAM.

Williamson’s four-day quarantine won’t necessarily impact his involvement in the team’s restart debut on July 30, although if he does suit up in that matchup he’ll be making his return to game action without the luxury of a pre-restart exhibition game in which to shake off rust from the hiatus.

Williamson’s absence was excused and he consented to daily COVID-19 tests, which all came back negative. For that reason, his quarantine is shorter than the 10 days it could otherwise be.

While the lack of exhibition games may result in the 20-year-old having to play himself back into game shape early into the eight-game seeding round, the team will be happy to have the offensive force back in action as they chase the No. 8 seed in the west.

The post Zion Williamson Returns to Bubble, Enters Quarantine appeared first on SLAM.

The team states that Williamson does intend to return although there’s no indication of when that might be. The Pelicans have extended their full support to Williamson and his family.

While the Pels don’t play in an official regular season contest until opening day of the restart two weeks from today, losing Williamson during the abbreviated pre-restart training camp could complicate his return.

In addition to having less reps to prepare for the season, Williamson will have to clear quarantine before he is cleared to join the bubble a second time. Williamson would need to quarantine for four days upon his return provided he tests negative every day that he’s gone.

The post Zion Williamson Leaves Bubble for Urgent Family Matter appeared first on SLAM.

“We were trying to get a meeting with him before [the coronavirus pandemic],” Lee told Sage Steele during a Jordan Brand live stream. “Ray Allen and I were trying to get a meeting with him in New Orleans. I’m still for it.”

Lee told Steele that he’s discussed the idea of a sequel with Allen on and off over the years. Allen, of course, played the iconic role of Jesus Shuttlesworth in the 1998 release.

Denzel Washington, Lee notes, would not be involved but implied that Rosario Dawson could be involved.

It’s unclear what the plot of a sequel would entail – or where a Williamson role would fit – but Lee mentioned specifically that people he’s spoken with would like to see what happened to the characters after the initial film.

“The story is murky in my mind, but the story is so rich,” Lee said.

Don’t mistake the interest in a meeting with Williamson for an indication that anything official is imminent, however.

“Things happen when they happen and you try not to force it,” Lee said.

Check out the full Jordan Brand live stream for Steel’s complete interview with Allen and Lee, a conversation that includes Lee breaking down how he cast Allen for the initial movie.

The post Zion Williamson A Candidate For He Got Game Sequel appeared first on SLAM.

“The most value should be in the wins,” says Nunn, who continues to make his case for the award.

The 24-year-old is averaging 15.6 points and 3.4 assists for a 41-24 Miami Heat squad.

Per The South Florida Sun-Sentinel :

“I’m a starting guard in this league,” the mostly soft-spoken 24 year old said. “I’ve done that all season long and we’ve been a winning team, a playoff team. So I definitely proved myself there.”

Confidence clearly is not an issue from arguably the biggest surprise of the Miami Heat’s season, at least this side of Duncan Robinson.

“I’m Rookie of the Year,” Nunn said in an interview with the South Florida Sun Sentinel, not backing down even when reminded of the superior statistics of Memphis Grizzlies breakout rookie Ja Morant.

“I think people will say that he is Rookie of the Year, but I don’t believe it,” Nunn continued. “The most value should be in the wins. And we’re both starting guards on teams, and our team has been holding it down. We’re a playoff team, so go ahead and give that Rookie of the Year to Kendrick Nunn.”

Related POLL: Ja Morant is the Unanimous Rookie of the Year

The post Kendrick Nunn: ‘I’m Rookie of the Year’ appeared first on SLAM.

To celebrate #TBT, SLAM will be posting an old, iconic cover story on the website every Thursday.

SLAM 210, featuring Zion Williamson, was published in June 2017.

—

There’s a mural on a wall in the downtown area of Spartanburg, SC. On top of a royal blue background, the words “THERE’S ONLY ONE. SPARTANBURG.” are painted in white alongside an outline of the state of South Carolina, with various lines cutting through and connecting at the point in the state’s northern region where Spartanburg lies.

It’s a classic small-city welcome, some nice public art that locals and visitors can take pictures in front of to post on Facebook or Instagram or wherever. But today, on this rainy mid-May afternoon, the mural looks a little different than it has in the past. That’s because a basketball hoop has been hammered into the wall right where those in-state lines meet. Spartanburg resident Lee Anderson put it there thinking it’d spruce up the photos. He was right.

Not only does the hoop help create some fun pics, it also perfectly encapsulates the pulse and heartbeat of Spartanburg at this moment. Sure, the closest NBA team plays about two hours away in a totally different state, and South Carolina is traditionally considered football country, but on this day—and in this week, month, even year—Spartanburg revolves around basketball. All because of one individual. A 16-year-old student who attends nearby Spartanburg Day School.

His name is Zion Williamson.

You’ve probably heard of Zion. If you haven’t, you’ve almost definitely seen videos of him on one of your social media feeds, likely soaring through the air for some mind-boggling dunk that doesn’t look like it should be possible at the highest professional level, let alone from a teenager who isn’t legally allowed to vote. A little over a year ago, Zion first made headlines when he caught an alley-oop and finished a dunk over a helpless defender, whom Zion then stared down as the entire gym exploded in celebration. When it happened, Williamson was 15 years old and the No. 17-ranked player in the Class of 2018, per ESPN’s rankings.

He balled out through the summer of 2016, taking home co-MVP at the NBPA Top 100 camp, winning co-MVP and the dunk contest at the Under Armour Elite 24 and just generally dominating the AAU circuit. Then his junior season hit, and so did the dunks, the huge stat lines, the viral highlights, the mixtapes—all of it. One after the next after the next, each game containing anywhere from 30 seconds to a few minutes of must-see internet fodder. On at least a couple of occasions each game, Zion would grab a rebound or catch an outlet pass, dribble into the open court or through the defense, and rise up and dunk with a ferocity never before seen from a high schooler. Ever.

“You think he’s going to make a regular play,” says Lee Sartor, Zion’s high school coach at Spartanburg Day, “and it starts that way, but he finishes with such power and force that it just shocks your soul. You’re just amazed by what you just witnessed. And you want to see it over and over again because it’s just so unbelievable.”

Zion stands about 6-7 (and he could still be growing) and weighs around 240 pounds. He’s a lefty with the handles of a point guard and the dunking ability of…well, nobody that’s come along yet. Maybe Vince Carter? Dr. J? Dominique Wilkins? A slightly less springy, definitively more powerful version of Zach LaVine? It’s tough to put into context something that is arriving for the first time.

Those highlights, mixed with the level of command Zion was demonstrating on the court through his junior season, have turned him into a celebrity of sorts. All of the team’s home and away games are packed. Fans have traveled hours on end to watch him play. After one road game, the post-game atmosphere was so crazy that the players and coaching staff had to band together and bolt through a tunnel out of the back of the gym and run to the team bus. “I remember as we were running, I could imagine how The Beatles felt, with people running after them,” Sartor says, only half-joking. And Zion, who as a youngster asked for autographs from the highly-touted high school basketball players he admired, makes a point to sign every autograph and snap every selfie asked of him.

“I think people are realizing that they’re witnessing the beginning of something that could result in them saying, ‘I saw this kid when he was just starting, and now he’s perhaps the best player in America, or the planet,’” Sartor says. “I think people want to get a glimpse of that. It’s a show, and Zion realizes that his game and the way he plays, it excites people and inspires people and entertains people. He could, sometimes, just shoot a jumpshot or make a finger roll, but he knows that people are amazed by what he can do above the rim and finish with dunks, so that’s what he does. He wants to entertain people. People get excited by the way he plays.”

Williamson’s buzz hit another level last January when Drake posted a photo on Instagram of him wearing Williamson’s No. 12 Spartanburg Day School jersey. Zion was sound asleep as the image spread.

“I woke up probably around 8-ish,” he says. “I had hundreds of messages—group chats, like 50 Snapchat notifications. My phone just blew up. They were all like, go check Instagram, look what Drake just posted. I saw that he had my jersey on, and I sent him an IG message that said, ‘Thanks for showing me so much love—I don’t think you understand how much this means to me. You’re my favorite rapper.’”

The two haven’t met in person yet but text here and there. And to answer a question Zion often gets—no, he didn’t send Drake the jersey. “I asked him myself,” Zion says. “I said, ‘Yo, how did you get that jersey?’ He said he had it custom made. I just left it at that.”

From there, the celeb love branched out. Odell Beckham Jr also wore the uni and posted a pic on IG. Floyd Mayweather FaceTimed with him. Dez Bryant, Nate Robinson and Dwight Howard all sent messages.

When we catch up with Zion, he’s sitting in the Spartanburg Day School gym, seated upright on a folding chair under a basket during his first SLAM cover shoot. It’s in this gym where many of the viral videos originated—the bleachers and area surrounding the court filled with people standing up and high-fiving, hugging one another and yelling their faces off after any of Zion’s miraculous dunks.

“It’s an adrenaline rush,” Zion says. “It just gives you so much energy. When I get the ball or a steal and I’m wide open, you just hear everybody rise, and you hear, ‘Ohhh…’ and then you dunk it, and everybody’s jumping, high-fiving each other, and you’re just running down the floor like, Let’s go!

“I love it,” he adds. “When I was a little kid, even though I didn’t know what advanced dunks were—like windmills, 360s—I used to just want to see somebody dunk. Like, ‘Can you dunk? Dunk it!’ So when I see little kids go, ‘Zion, dunk it!’ I just look at them and say, I got you.”

Shortly before our interview, Zion, back on the court after a few weeks away from the game while he rested a bruised knee, does some “light” dunking for the SLAM photographer and videographers who are documenting the day. As he gets loose, I stand at halfcourt, watching. Eventually he takes a real running start, then leaps so high and throws it down with such fury that I contort my body in a full twist as I try to absorb what on earth I just witnessed. The aforementioned Lee Anderson—Zion’s stepdad—looks over at me and asks, “Are you OK there, Adam?” I tell him yes, but the answer is no. I’ve been to five NBA Slam Dunk Contests. I’ve never seen anyone dunk like that.

Part of the interest in Zion’s story comes from the fact that all of this—these dunks, this photo shoot, those highlight-reel games (at least the home ones)—is taking place in South Carolina’s Spartanburg Day School, a random private school with a sprawling campus in a relatively nondescript small city in South Carolina. To say that this school isn’t exactly a traditional basketball powerhouse would be quite the understatement. The entire school has an enrollment of 450 students, and that accounts for 3K (preschoolers) all the way up through 12th grade; the “Upper School,” which consists of grades 9-12, has about 150. The school doesn’t have a full-time basketball coach, and Sartor, who moonlights as the school’s varsity basketball coach, has a full-time gig as a Sheriff’s Deputy for Spartanburg County, though he says these days coaching basketball keeps him busy enough that it’s close to a full-time job.

“The school is small, intimate,” says Sharonda Sampson, Zion’s mother. “It’s not like when you go to a large high school and you get smothered. That doesn’t happen here. He goes to school with kids of people who own major corporations. So it’s like, ‘Basketball? OK, whatever.’ They see Zion, and he gets some attention, but they don’t bother him. They just like hanging out with him and being his friend.”

And like the school, Spartanburg as a city has not experienced anything like Zion. Football players, like former NFL running back Stephen Davis, have come out of the area, but never any big-name hoopers. (And Davis went off to Auburn as the No. 1 recruit in the country 25 years ago.)

“Usually you’re talking about what a community is doing to help nurture and do what’s right for teenage kids,” says Will Rothschild, Vice President of Strategic Communications of the Spartanburg Area Chamber of Commerce. “In this case, it’s a teenager doing a whole lot for his community. It’s a little odd to talk about—but it’s great.”

Rothschild gives an example of just how much attention Zion has brought upon the area: Last summer, Spartanburg hosted an AAU tournament that Zion played in, and the college coaches’ private jets were coming in at such a rapid pace that the local airport almost ran out of free space.

Zion isn’t originally from Spartanburg, though. He was born in Salisbury, NC, and moved to Florence, SC, when he was a toddler. Zion’s parents divorced when he was 5; his mother would later marry Anderson, who played guard at Clemson and then Columbus State in the late 70s. Anderson coached an AAU team and ran a basketball camp that Zion played in during the summertime.

“Zion came in very young, and he would get the basic stuff,” Anderson says. “From 9-5, every day [during the summer], for about six, seven years. That pushed him way over the top. Basic fundamentals, ballhandling, shooting, defense, rebounding drills. He got it all at a young age. That’s how he got ahead of his class.”

“I sucked,” Zion says. “But playing the game of basketball, it’s like a love—my first love. When you start playing, you don’t wanna stop.”

Zion wasn’t very tall, so he learned how to play point guard. “He mastered that pretty good,” Anderson says. “When he got to sixth grade, I just knew he would be way beyond the middle school competition. When he got to seventh grade, he was just dominating.”

Anderson had known Sartor from the South Carolina AAU circuit, and the family moved to Spartanburg at the beginning of Zion’s ninth grade year. The thought was Spartanburg Day offered a better basketball opportunity than where they were in the Florence area, and if hoops didn’t pan out, Zion would be getting a strong education in the process.

Uhh, good news—hoops panned out. As an eighth grade PG, Zion stood around 5-10, but he grew to 6-3 as a freshman and to 6-6 as a sophomore. He finished all-state as a freshman, but his team lost in the state championship and he went into that summer without any scholarship options. The following season Spartanburg Day won the state championship, and Zion hit summer ’16 with offers to local colleges like Wofford and Clemson. Then he played at a tournament in Dallas, where he picked up an offer from Iowa State. “So I’m like, OK, I can definitely go to college to play basketball,” he says. Next up was a tourney in Atlanta, where he left with “like 20” scholarship offers. He had arrived.

Zion is now a legitimate 6-7 forward but maintains the floor general skills he honed as a middle schooler with an added bounce unseen elsewhere on the high school scene. “This athleticism people keep telling me I have, it just came outta nowhere,” he says, smiling.

His game is undeniably similar to a certain previously buzzed-about high school recruit. He’s maybe an inch or two shorter than LeBron James was at the same age, and Bron was a better passer, but Zion is a better dunker and either equally or even more athletic at his size. They both were and are more than capable ballhandlers, both had and have seemingly NBA-ready bodies as high schoolers. Like Bron, Zion will need to improve his outside shooting, but if King James has taught us anything, it’s that perimeter skills can be improved immensely with hard work and time.

Zion’s stats have backed up the highlights. Per MaxPreps, he averaged 36.8 points and 13.0 rebounds this season, leading Spartanburg Day to a second consecutive state championship, albeit against lesser competition than some of his peers at basketball powerhouses—though in December he dropped 53 points in a victory over five-star recruit and future UNC guard Jalek Felton’s Gray Collegiate Academy, shooting 24-24 inside the three-point line and 25-28 overall.

He says he’s comfortable at Spartanburg Day, yet naturally many wonder if he’ll play out his senior year there or take off for tougher comp at one of the HS hoops factories across the country. And then, of course, there’s his college decision. He says his recruitment is wide open, with Kentucky, North Carolina, Duke and South Carolina considered to be at the top of the list. The college coaches have been so relentless in their recruiting that the family had to instill a rule: No phone calls or texts after 10 p.m. EST. “It’d be like 11, 12 o’clock, and coaches are calling, and we’re like, Wait a minute, do they not know you have to go to school tomorrow? You still need your rest,” Sampson says. “We were just like, OK, at this time, the phone goes on airplane mode.”

It’s no secret what Spartanburg’s residents are hoping for. As Zion takes photos in front of the “THERE’S ONLY ONE” mural, a man driving past in a pick-up truck yells, “Go to South Carolina!”

“Maybe!” Zion chirps back.

Time will tell where he ends up for what will likely be his only season of NCAA ball, just as time will tell how Zion’s game evolves from here. As an athletic wing who can handle the rock or do work in the paint on either end, Williamson’s well-rounded skill set makes him perfect for the increasingly position-less direction the game is heading. Like any teenager, he’s got a ways to go—some are skeptical that he’s even the best player in the Class of 2018, a title he competes for with Marvin Bagley III, a 6-11 power forward from Arizona. But there’s no debating that the future is bright. As a young child, he obsessed over tapes of Magic Johnson, mimicking Magic’s iconic no-look passes, and he now studies his three favorite players: LeBron (for his on- and off-court reputations), Kawhi Leonard (for the drama-free way he handles his business) and Russell Westbrook (for his ever-intense drive).

“I want to be one of the greatest that’s ever played this game,” Zion says, before listing off his personal goals. “I want to have a great reputation—nothing bad. Be a Hall of Famer. Try to win at least three NBA Finals, even though that’s probably nearly impossible, or very hard—but I’ma try. And give back to my community.”

There’s a lot of work to be done before any of that happens, but Zion is on the right track. His upbringing has provided him with such a strong backbone that texts from Drake and direct messages from a plethora of major celebrities haven’t gotten to his head. His status as a perpetual highlight reel in an era when bite-sized highlights thrive like never before means the spotlight will always shine bright. And his game suits the current landscape of pro basketball—and will likely suit it even better five-plus years from now.

Even his name is prescient. Mount Zion was the highest point in ancient Jerusalem. This Zion has begun his ascent to a height most of us can barely fathom. All we can do now is look up.

—

Adam Figman is the Editor-in-Chief of SLAM. Follow him on Twitter @afigman.

Portraits by Zach Wolfe

The post ARE YOU READY FOR ZION WILLIAMSON?: The SLAM 210 Cover Story appeared first on SLAM.

Morant, 20, is averaging 17.6 points and 6.9 assists for the Memphis Grizzlies.

Zion Williamson was limited by injuries to just 19 games so far—but played spectacularly—and appears headed for a distant second-place finish in the ROY race.

Per ESPN:

After trading Mike Conley last summer, the Grizzlies were projected to finish last in the Western Conference. Instead, led by Morant, Memphis found itself with a 3 ½-game lead for the final playoff spot over the Portland Trail Blazers and Williamson’s New Orleans Pelicans when the season was suspended. If the NBA were to play an abbreviated regular-season schedule upon resuming the season, Morant’s Grizzlies would be more likely to hold onto that spot, solidifying his Rookie of the Year case even more.

If Morant were to win the award unanimously as he did in this straw poll, he’d join Karl-Anthony Towns, Damian Lillard and Blake Griffin as the only players to do so over the past 30 seasons.

Williamson has played only 19 of the Pelicans’ 64 games. No player has won Rookie of the Year playing fewer than 50 games (Patrick Ewing played exactly 50 in winning the award in 1985-86).

Related Ja Morant: ‘I Honestly Don’t Care About Rookie of the Year’

The post POLL: Ja Morant is the Unanimous Rookie of the Year appeared first on SLAM.

“Anybody that says, ‘LeBron, why would he do that while he’s playing? He’s showing signs of weakness, he’s buddy-buddy with these guys he’s going against.’ Tell ’em to kiss my ass. With a smile, too.”

James finished 34 points, 13 assists and 12 rebounds Sunday night to lead the visiting Los Angeles Lakers past the New Orleans Pelicans 122-114.

Zion Williamson poured in 35 points and marveled at James’ clutch play.

Per The AP:

“He is who he is — incredible player,” Williamson said of James. “I give respect when it’s due. He hit a big shot and it helped them seal the game.”

His dominance served as an emphatic encore to his season-high 40 points in a victory over New Orleans six days earlier in Los Angeles.

“He just controls the whole game,” Pelicans coach Alvin Gentry said. “You go down and double him, and he finds the open pass for 3. If you don’t double him, he’s so strong and so skilled that he just lays the ball in the basket. … I’m just amazed that they talk about anybody other than him for MVP.”

James approached Williamson and spoke with him briefly on the court after the final horn.

“It’s just my responsibility. No one told me to do that,” James said. “You see all these guys — these young guys. You know, the league is in a very good place and if I’m able to give my wisdom of the game, pass it down while I’m playing or after I’m playing, I feel like it’s my job because the game has just given me so much since I started playing when I was 8 years old.”

Related Post Up: LeBron Posts Triple-Double in Win Against Pelicans

The post LeBron James to Critics of His Mentorship: ‘Kiss My Ass’ appeared first on SLAM.

Kristaps Porzingis posted a season-high 38 points in the W, his third straight game with 20 or more points. Seth Curry was Dallas’ second-leading scorer with 27 points. Luke Doncic missed Sunday’s action with a thumb sprain.

Bucks 93 (52-8), Hornets 85 (21-39)

Giannis Antetokounmpo scored the last nine points for the Bucks, finishing the day with 41 points to give Milwaukee its sixth straight win. The Greek Freak also grabbed 20 boards. Brook Lopez added 16 points.

Clippers 136 (41-19), Sixers 130 (27-24)

The Clippers had four players who finished with 20-plus points as Kawhi Leonard led all scorers with 30 points. Montrezl Harrell and Lou Williams, one of the L’s top 1-2 bench duos, finished with 24 apieces in L.A.

Nuggets 133 (41-19), Raptors 118 (42-18)

Nikola Jokic messed around and had a triple-double (23 points, 18 rebounds, 11 assists) on Sunday night. This was Jokic’s 43rd triple-double of the season. Jamal Murray finished with 22 points.

Kings 106 (26-34), Pistons 100 (20-42)

De’Aaron Fox sealed the game with a bucket down the stretch, scoring 11 of his 23 points in the fourth quarter. Sacramento overcame a 17-point deficit in front of their home crowd. Buddy Hield put up 19 points off the bench.

Lakers 122 (46-13), Pelicans 114 (26-34)

It was one of those nights from LeBron James, who posted 34 points, 13 assists and 12 rebounds against the Pelicans in the Big Easy. With no Anthony Davis, Kyle Kuzma filled in the void, scoring 20 points in the win. Averly Bradley and Danny Green had 10 apiece.

Wizards 124 (21-37), Warriors 110 (13-47)

Bradley Beal scored 22 of his 34 points in the first half. His streak of 25-plus point games is now at 18 (franchise record). David Bertans went 8-of-10 from beyond the arc and put up 29 points in 30 minutes.

The post Post Up: LeBron Posts Triple-Double in Win Against Pelicans 👑 appeared first on SLAM.

Domantas Sabonis led the way with 21 points, 15 rebounds, and 9 assists on 8-10 shooting as Indiana cruised to a win at home. Five other Pacers scored in double figures, including T.J. Warren (19) and Malcolm Brogdon (15). Myles Turner was dominant on the defensive end, finishing with a career-high 8 blocks. The Hornets were led by Miles Bridges who dropped 17 in the loss.

Bucks 108 (50-8), Raptors 97 (42-16)

In a much-anticipated battle between the top two teams in the East, the Bucks pulled away in the third quarter, outscoring the Raptors 34-19 en route to their 50th win of the season. Khris Middleton dropped a team-high 22, while Giannis stuffed the stat sheet with 19 points, 19 rebounds, and 8 assists. Eric Bledsoe added 17 and 7 rebounds, and Brook Lopez finished with 15 points and 5 blocks in the win. Pascal Siakam finished with 22 points and 5 3PM in the loss.

Thunder 124 (36-22), Bulls 122 (20-39)

It was a wild one in the Windy City. The Bulls erased a 24-point second half deficit to tie the game late. The comeback was led by Coby White (35 points, 6 3PM, 7 rebounds) and Zach LaVine (41 points). But big-time buckets from Chris Paul and clutch free throws from the entire Thunder team held off the Chicago surge and secured the road win. Danilo Gallinari finished with a team-high 24 points, and Dennis Schroeder and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander each dropped 21 in the win. CP3 added 19 points and 9 assists for OKC.

Nuggets 115 (40-18), Pistons 98 (19-41)

The Nuggets picked up their 40th win of the season, led by 29 points off the bench from Jerami Grant. Jamal Murray added 16 points and 8 assists in the win. For Detroit, Derrick Rose and Christian Wood each dropped 20 in the loss.

Celtics 118 (40-17), Trail Blazers 106 (26-33)

Boston also secured win number 40 on the road in Portland. Jayson Tatum was unstoppable, dropping 36 points, including a career-high 8 3PM to lead the Celtics. Jaylen Brown added 24 points, and all five Boston starters finished in double figures. Without Damian Lillard, the Blazers were led by CJ McCollum, who dropped 28, and Hassan Whiteside, who finished with 18 points and 19 rebounds in the loss.

Lakers 118 (44-12), Pelicans 109 (25-33)

It was the game every NBA fan had been waiting for: the first installment of LeBron vs. Zion. And it did not disappoint.

The Pelicans battled tough with the West’s top team, but the Lakers pulled away in the fourth, outscoring New Orleans 30-23 in the final frame. LeBron showed out, dropping a season-high 40 points to go along with 8 rebounds and 6 assists in the win. Anthony Davis finished with 21 points, 14 rebounds, and 6 blocks, and Danny Green added 17 points on 5 3PM. Brandon Ingram led the way for New Orleans, dropping 34 points on his former team. In Zion’s first matchup with the King, he finished with 29 points, including 13-19 from the free throw line.

Kings 112 (24-33), Warriors 94 (12-46)

Harris Barnes and De’Aaron Fox each finished with 21 points to lead the Kings to the win on the road. Bogdan Bogdanovich dropped 17, and Buddy Hield added 19 off the bench in the win. The Warriors had all five starters finish in double figures, led by Marquese Chriss with 21, and Andrew Wiggins with 16.

The post Post Up: LeBron Drops Season-High 40 in Win Over Pelicans appeared first on SLAM.

With the game close down the stretch, Lebron James (29 points) hit a clutch turnaround to give the Lakers the lead as they escaped with the W on Sunday afternoon.

Anthony Davis finished with 32 points and grabbed 13 rebounds. Kyle Kuzma was huge off the bench, scoring 16 points.

Raptors 127 (41-15), Pacers 81 (33-23)

Pascal Siakam scored a game-high 21 points, Kyle Lowry had 16 points and Serge Ibaka finished with 15 points to give Toronto its 17th of 18th win. Matt Thomas (17 points), Terence Davis (13 points) and Rodae Hollis-Jefferson (12 points) combined for 43 bench points.

Nuggets 128 (39-18), Timberwolves 116 (16-39)

Four of Denver’s starters finished in double figures with Paul Millsap scoring 25 points in 26 minutes. Monte Morris had 13 points off the bench.

Thunder 131 (35-22), Spurs 103 (24-32)

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led all scorers with a team-high 22 points, Steven Adams finished with 21 points and Luguentz Dort went 6-for-6 from the field, adding 15 points in the win.

Bulls 126 (20-38), Wizards 117 (20-35)

Zach LaVine put up 32 points in 36 minutes in the home win. Coby White had an impressive performance, too, scoring 33 points off the bench.

Pelicans 115 (25-32), Warriors 101 (12-45)

Zion Williamson scored 28 points, scoring 20-plus points for the eighth-straight game. Jrue Holiday finished with 23 points and dished out 15 dimes in the Bay.

Trailblazers 107 (26-32), Pistons 104 (19-40)

CJ McCollum had a 41-point performance in the W. Carmelo Anthony was the Blazers’ second-leading scorer with 32 points.

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The award, largely believed to be headed Ja Morant‘s way this season, would be “nice, but if not, it’s fine,” says Williamson.

Zion and the New Orleans Pelicans are solely focused on sneaking into the playoffs.

Per The Times-Picayune:

“I’m excited for it,” [Brandon] Ingram said. “I think all our guys are healthy right now. We have a pretty good rhythm and pretty good group right now. I think it’s going to be some fun basketball. I think while I was out the last three games, they found a rhythm pushing the break. On the defensive end, they’ve been really good. Hopefully, we can continue to find our identity.”

Ingram missed the final three games before the All-Star break with a sprained right ankle. He played sparingly in Sunday’s main event but said he expects to have no restrictions when New Orleans faces Portland on Friday.

“I think I”ll be a full go, just having so much time off,” Ingram said. “I think I have three or four more days before I get back. I think it’s going to be almost 100%.”

They are in a four-team race with the Spurs, Trail Blazers and Grizzlies for the final playoff spot in the Western Conference. They trail Memphis, which is eighth, by 5½ games. They are half a game behind San Antonio and 1½ games behind Portland.

“We’ve just got to take care of the business on our side,” [Alvin] Gentry said. “We have 27 games left. What we have to do is try to look at each and every one of those games and play at a real, real high level. We still control our own destiny until somebody tells me otherwise.”

Related Zion Williamson: ‘I Didn’t Expect to Do Nothing Like This’

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“I didn’t expect to do nothing like this,” Williamson told reporters Tuesday night after posting a game-high 31 points in the New Orleans Pelicans’ 138-117 blowout of the visiting Portland Trail Blazers.

The 19-year-old rookie added nine rebounds and five assists while shooting 10-of-17 from the field.

Per The Athletic:

“I expected to make an impact, but I didn’t expect to do nothing like this,” Williamson said. “I was kind of looking to come in and just kind of fit in and just not try to mess up. My teammates and coaches are always pushing me, like, ‘No, be outside the box.’”

The No. 1 pick in last year’s draft is averaging 21 points, 7.7 rebounds and 2.3 assists while shooting 57.6 percent from the field.

“He’s a walking 24-and-8 guy. He’s a guy that you think he’s doing well, then you look up and he’s 39 (points) and four (rebounds). That’s the kind of player he is,” Josh Hart said. “He’s only played (nine) games. It’s scary to see how good he is this early. Hopefully, he can continue to keep getting better day by day. He’s going to be a problem.”

As his reputation grows, he’ll have to find different ways to be effective with more teams forcing him to rely on his weaknesses.

“People are trying to find their own way (to stop me), but I feel like my game is so unique that I’ll be able to adjust to it on the fly,” Williamson said. “At the end of the day, I’m 19. I’ve still got a lot of room for growing. I will mess up. I’m not perfect, I will have bad games. I’m just going to learn from them.”

Related Zion Williamson: ‘I Don’t Want Any Restrictions’

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The 76ers picked up their 25th win at home, tied with the Bucks for most in the NBA. Ben Simmons was dominant, notching his second consecutive triple double with 26 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists. Joel Embiid dropped 26 and Josh Richardson added 21 for Philly. The Clippers were led by Kawhi Leonard, who finished with 30 points and 9 assists in the loss.

Wizards 126 (19-33), Bulls 114 (19-36)

The Wizards were led by Bradley Beal, who finished with 30 points and 7 assists in the home win. Rui Hachimura added 20 points. Zach LaVine dropped a game-high 41 points to go along with 9 rebounds in the loss.

Pelicans 138 (23-32), Trail Blazers 117 (25-30)

It was the Zion Williamson show in New Orleans tonight. The rookie finished with 31 points on 10-17 shooting, the first 30 point game of his career. He also added 9 rebounds and 5 assists as the Pelicans cruised to the home win over the Blazers. JJ Reddick dropped 20 points off the bench, and Jrue Holiday and Lonzo Ball finished with 10 assists each. For Portland, CJ McCollum and Damian Lillard each scored 20 points.

Spurs 114 (23-32), Thunder 106 (32-22)

The Spurs outscored the Thunder 35-29 in the fourth quarter to pick up an impressive win on the road. LaMarcus Aldridge led San Antonio with 25 points and 14 rebounds. Dejounte Murray added 25 points and 9 rebounds, and Patty Mills dropped 20 off the bench in the win. For OKC, Chris Paul finished with team-high 31 points and 7 assists.

Rockets 116 (34-20), Celtics 105 (37-16)

The Rockets scored 38 points in the fourth quarter to pick up a big win, snapping a two-game losing streak. James Harden went off for 42 points, 8 rebounds and 7 assists, including scoring 19 straight Rockets points in a third quarter in which they outscored Boston 31-22. Russell Westbrook also shined, finishing with 36 points, 10 rebounds, and 5 assists in the win. Boston was lead by Gordon Hayward, who dropped a team-high 20 points in the loss.

The post Post Up: Zion Drops Career-High 31 Points in Win Over Blazers appeared first on SLAM.

Executive vice president of basketball operations David Griffin, however, is the one with the final say and is adamant that the team will make decisions that preserve the big man’s long-term health.

Griffin spoke about the minute restriction with ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, about how the training staff set out to make a judgment call when they identified signs of fatigue – even if that fatigue came as a result of a made-for-Hardwood Classics burst of 17 points in three minutes.

“It’s not something that I think the coaching staff was overly comfortable with, just conceptually, but I also don’t really care,” Griffin said. “We spent 14 weeks putting him position to have a sustainable future and we’re going to be very mindful of that moving forward.“

If the coaching staff was miffed about having to sit their hottest player just as the playoff-hungry team began to show signs of life in a winnable ball game, Twitter and the blogosphere were outright irate.

One need not look far for fans of the game expressing their displeasure with the decision to rest Williamson, his stretch of dominance came out of nowhere and captivated fans that had been lulled numb by a relatively anticlimactic debut.

Williamson’s debut was fun – it was fascinating, really – but while columns and features about letting the kid play have merit, David Griffin and the rest of the Pels’ front office have a job to do.

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Williamson, 19, finished with 22 points for the Pelicans, who fell 121-117 to the visiting San Antonio Spurs.

Head coach Alvin Gentry said New Orleans’ medical staff made the call to sit out the prized rookie for the game’s final five minutes.

Per The AP:

“The medical people said that was it,” Gentry said, alluding to precautionary restrictions placed on Williamson’s playing time in the early days of his return to action.

“Me, personally, I don’t want any restrictions,” Williamson said. “But I’m not a doctor or a trainer, so I’ve just got to listen to them.”

He certainly found his rhythm in the fourth quarter of his first game, raising hopes for what lies ahead in New Orleans’ remaining 37 games.

“It was everything I dreamed of, except for the losing part,” Williamson said. “Just the energy the crowd brought, the energy the city brought, it was electric and I’m just grateful that they did that. So it was a dream come true to finally get out there, but at the end of the day I did want to win, so we’ve got to look to the next game.”

Related Zion Williamson: ‘I Finally Get to Go Back Out There’

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Zion Williamson had the world buzzing as he scored 17 straight points in the fourth quarter, nearly taking down San Antonio by himself. The No. 1 pick finished with 22 points, 7 rebounds and 3 assists in just 18 minutes of work in his NBA debut.

Pacers 112 (29-16), Suns 87 (18-26)

TJ Warren scored a team-high 25 in his return to Phoenix to lead the way to victory. Domantas Sabonis did his part, too, adding 24 points (8-for-11 shooting) and 13 boards for the Pacers.

Jazz 129 (31-13), Warriors 96 (10-36)

D’Angelo Russell put up 26 points in 28 minutes, but the Jazz’ depth — 13 different players got on the scoreboard — was far too much to overcome for the depleted Warriors. Rudy Gobert had 22 points and a team-high 15 boards and Donovan Mitchell scored 23 in just 22 minutes.

Nuggets 105 (30-14), Rockets 121 (27-16)

The Rockets’ backcourt was completely in sync as Russell Westbrook and James Harden combined for 55 points, 21 rebounds and 13 dimes to edge the gap between them and the second place Nuggets.

Timberwolves 110 (15-29), Bulls 117 (17-29)

Zach LaVine (team-high 25 points) was able to get the W over his former team despite a 40-point outing from Karl-Anthony Towns. Lauri Markkanen added 21 to aid the Bulls.

Wizards 129 (14-29), Heat 134 (31-13)

The Heat’s bench backcourt duo of Tyler Herro (25 points, 7 threes) and Goran Dragic (22 points, 10 assists) took care of business as Miami scored 16 points in overtime to down the Wizards.

Bradley Beal scored a team-high 38 for Washington.

Grizzlies 95 (20-24), Celtics 119 (29-14)

The Grizzlies had the lead at the end of the first quarter, but the Celtics bounced back to dominate the rest of the night as Jayson Tatum scored 23 in 26 minutes of work.

Lakers 100 (35-9), Knicks 92 (12-33)

LeBron James picked up a win in his favorite arena to travel to, leading the way with 21 points, 6 boards and 5 dimes for Los Angeles.

Thunder 120 (26-19), Magic 114 (21-24)

Dennis Schroder scored 31 points (13-for-18 shooting) and had 9 dimes off the bench to lead the Thunder.

Clippers 95 (31-14), Hawks 104 (11-34)

The Clippers were only able to score 35 points in the second half as John Collins’ 33-point night pushed the Hawks ahead. Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, Patrick Beverley didn’t suit up for Los Angeles and Trae Young missed the night for Atlanta.

Kings 106 (15-29), Pistons 127 (17-28)

Derrick Rose, Christian Wood and Reggie Jackson combined for 67 to lead the Pistons’ charge against the Kings.

De’Aaron Fox had 22 in the effort.

76ers 95 (26-17), Raptors 107 (30-14)

Fred VanVleet’s 22 points and Pascal Siakam’s 18 points and 15 boards led the Raptors past the Sixers in a rematch of last year’s Eastern Conference Semifinals.

The post Post Up: Zion Williamson TOOK OVER in his NBA Debut appeared first on SLAM.

The rehab from knee surgery in October has been “very difficult,” admits the 19-year-old picked first overall by New Orleans in last summer’s NBA Draft.

Zion gave Pelicans fans a taste of his incredibly tantalizing potential, putting up 27.3 points on 71.4% shooting across four preseason games.

Per The Times-Picayune:

“Y’all (might) have saw me meditating on the sidelines,” Williamson joked. “It’s been very difficult. But it’s finally here. I finally get to go back out there.”

The Pelicans took a holistic approach to recovery. The process has been difficult. Pelicans vice president of basketball operations David Griffin admitted that, at times, Williamson grew frustrated when the team required him to continue rehabbing after he felt ready to return to the court.

“I did learn a lot about my body during this time period,” Williamson said. “It came a lot from watching film. Learning when to use my energy. Making smarter reads and not exhausting my energy.”

New Orleans is ready, and Williamson is, too. Williamson’s NBA dreams got put on hold for the past three months, but after a long and difficult recovery process, he is ready to play the game he loves again.

“Honestly, I don’t know if I’m going to get sleep,” Williamson said. “I’m gonna be too excited about my first NBA game.”

Related ‘He’s Not Normal’: Zion Williamson Gained 8 Pounds of Muscle in a Week

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Is he nervous?

“It’s just basketball,” Zion Williamson told ESPN’s Andrew Lopez. “This is what I’ve been doing since I was 4.“

He’s not wrong. For years Williamson has been wreaking havoc on his opponents and for nearly as long, fans and the media have been fixated.

Williamson made the cover of SLAM Magazine as a 16-year-old thanks in no small part to the fact that he terrorizes the basketball court like the Patrick Ewing Monstar in Space Jam.

Read It: Adam Figman’s cover story on 16-year-old Zion Williamson

Williamson wrote SLAM’s high school diary in 2017-18, went away to play college basketball at Duke, nearly precipitated the real-time implosion of NCAA basketball in front of none other than Barack Obama, got drafted with the top pick in the 2019 No. 1 NBA Draft and is now here, speaking about his regular season debut on the eve of his arrival.

The fact that we’re talking about Williamson’s debut in January, of course, stands out. After several preseason contests’ worth of brilliance in October, it became clear that a knee injury that required rehabilitation would sideline the standout rookie for an ambiguous amount of time.

Williamson’s rehabilitation stretched from an initial return timeline of six-to-eight weeks all the way to the three month hiatus that it ended up being. In the meantime, Williamson has remained a major part of the NBA narrative despite never having actually played when it matters.

In November, Reggie Miller riffed that Williamson could miss the entire 2019-20 campaign on live television and was immediately correct by a ‘little birdy’ that understood differently. Earlier this month the 19-year-old’s absence was at least partially credited with the ratings drop impacting the league at large.

Williamson will remain in the spotlight for the remainder of the 2019-20 campaign and much will be written about his integration into a Pelicans offense that has started to show promise after a miserable 13-game losing streak.

At the halfway point of the season, the Pels are just three games behind the No. 8 seed in the West. With or without Williamson, the crew assembled by first year executive David Griffin is proving that they’re as intriguing as many wondered in the summer.

Free here on out, with the uncertainty surrounding Williamson’s absence now all but vanquished, it’s just basketball.

The post Zion Williamson Prepares For Regular Season Debut appeared first on SLAM.

“He’s not normal,” says Griffin, who announced that the 19-year-old rookie will make his NBA debut Jan. 22.

Williamson underwent right knee surgery Oct. 21, and the Pels have been extremely cautious with his rehab.

Per ESPN:

“He’s doing s— from a physics perspective that no one else does,” Griffin says. “It’s fascinating to me. We’ve learned more during this process than we’ve taught him.”

The Pelicans engaged in a teamwide heavy weightlifting routine for just one week during the offseason. Williamson gained eight pounds of muscle during that span, a degree of weight gain that shocked staffers.

“He’s not normal,” Griffin says. “So finding stasis with Zion is the challenge, because he’s 19 years old. He’s still growing. It’s not going to be about a number. It’s going to be about metrics of flexibility and strength and control and all of the different things that we can measure that really are outside of weight.”

Leading the Pelicans in their care of Williamson is Aaron Nelson, whom they hired in May as their vice president of player care and performance.

“Aaron Nelson has been with all of the best that have ever done this,” Griffin says. “He’s added years to everybody else’s career. They’ll figure it out.”

Related NBA Official: Zion Williamson’s Absence Hurt TV Ratings ‘Big Time’

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Injuries have been a factor in the depressed TV viewership numbers, and it didn’t help that the No. 1 overall draft pick was hurt during a meaningless exhibition game.

Williamson, 19, will make his long awaited NBA debut Jan. 22, New Orleans Pelicans president of basketball operations David Griffin announced Wednesday.

Per Yahoo Sports:

“I think so. The League does need him,” Pelicans coach Alvin Gentry told Yahoo Sports. “Because he’s a great personality, a great feel for the game. And he’s a different kind of player. Kind of like Luka [Doncic], basically. They bring an element to the game you don’t see in other guys.”

A strong start to the preseason was halted by surgery on his right knee (meniscus) in October, and the Pelicans have been cautious with the timeline surrounding his potential return, preferring to look at the big picture.

“He wants to play. In those situations, you have to protect a guy from himself,” Gentry told Yahoo Sports. “This has been his lifelong goal. We understand what it is, but I told him we have your best interests at hand. We’re not gonna do anything [that’s a] risk, put you in harm’s way. We gotta be patient enough to understand that.”

According to a league official who requested anonymity, in 22 of the first 35 national TV games (ESPN, ABC, TNT), at least one star was missing from the game (63 percent).

“The Pelicans games were put on almost exclusively because of him,” the official told Yahoo Sports. “So his absence hurt us big time because they were on [national TV] so much early, and it hurt the spotlight on those games.”

Related ‘I’m Not Out Forever’: Zion Williamson Upbeat in Rehab from Knee Injury

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The news comes from executive vice president of basketball operations David Griffin who told the media that Williamson will suit up barring any setbacks in forthcoming team practices.

Griffin’s debut will come at home against San Antonio and won’t involve a predetermined minute restriction. Instead the team will see how the big man reacts and gauge his playing time accordingly.

Griffin noted to the media that there was never any point during the past few months that the team considered sitting Williamson for the entire 2019-20 campaign.

Williamson wowed NBA fans with an impressive preseason showing, averaging 23.3 points and 6.5 rebounds per game in 27.2 minutes of work. Now, Griffin believes, Williamson is even healthier than he was then.

The Pelicans don’t expect Williamson to participate in back to backs but won’t be faced with making such a decision until March as the team isn’t schedule for any until then.

The post Pelicans Expect Zion Williamson To Debut Jan. 22 appeared first on SLAM.

The New Orleans Pelicans have announced that rookie forward Zion Williamson has undergone his first full practice with the team since the surgery performed on his knee in October.

The highly touted top pick from last June’s NBA Draft missed the first three months of his rookie campaign following the operation to repair a torn meniscus in his right knee.

The initial timeframe for the injury was six-to-eight weeks but more recently, Shams Charania of The Athletic relayed that the two parties were focusing on a January, 2020 debut.

Williamson’s absence has been the subject off much interest over the course of the first half of 2019-20. Speculation over when the Duke product would actually set foot on the court was rampant with some contemplating whether he would miss the entire year.

The post Zion Williamson Undergoes First Full Practice Since Surgery appeared first on SLAM.

As Scott Kushner of The Times-Picayune reports, we’re now six weeks into the original six-to-eight week timeline and the team has been mum about a projected return date.

When Miller, courtside at a Pels game, opined that Williamson may be out for the entire 2019-20 campaign, he was promptly informed that the 2019 NBA Draft’s first-overall pick was on pace to meet the initially forecast return window.

Miller relayed the correction on television and we’ve awaited further details since.

Now, TNT’s Kristen Ledlow is reporting that, while Williamson has turned a corner in his rehabilitation, his return will definitely come outside of the six-to-eight week window. That means hoops fans won’t see the rookie in action until the second half of December or later.

Williamson has been working his way back to game shape after knee surgery to correct a torn meniscus in October.

ESPN’s Marc J. Spears reported last week that the forward had begun working out and bearing partial weight but that he hadn’t yet been cleared for contact.

The post Zion Williamson’s Return To Exceed Projected Timeline appeared first on SLAM.

Now, TNT’s Reggie Miller confirms that the big man’s recovery is right on track to get back on the court in mid-December.

The No. 1 pick in the 2019 NBA Draft dominated preseason but was ruled out of the team’s final exhibition match and hasn’t seen regular season action at all.

Miller’s revelation came shortly after he speculated that the first-year forward could potentially miss the entire 2019-20 season.

Miller, of course, was courtside commentating on a Pelicans game and could have been corrected by somebody within the organization after broadcasting his more pessimistic “gut feeling”.

There have been no shortage of hot takes regarding Williamson’s injury, many of which center around the idea that he’s too heavy for his playing style. The team has emphatically denied that his weight has anything to do with the injury.

The post Zion Williamson On Pace For Mid-December Return appeared first on SLAM.

“I’m not out forever,” the 19-year-old rookie told reporters Thursday, while adding that there’s no need to panic over New Orleans’ rough 1-6 start to the season.

Pelicans head coach Alvin Gentry says it would be “very ambitious” for Williamson to suit up again in November.

Per The Athletic and Times-Picayune:

“It hurt at first, but I’m not out forever,” Williamson said. “My mindset is just come back stronger, come back better so I can help my team.”

The team initially provided a six- to eight-week recovery timetable, an estimate that would put Williamson back on the court in early or mid-December.

“It’s a long season,” Williamson said. “This isn’t like college or something where it’s 30 games. It’s 82 games, so I don’t really see a need to rush back.”

The injury, Williamson said, occurred in New Orleans’ second-to-last preseason game in San Antonio. Williamson looked excellent in one of his team’s final dress rehearsals, notching 22 points and 10 rebounds in 31 minutes, but began experiencing discomfort afterwards.

“I felt some soreness,” Williamson said. “I went and got it checked out, and I found out.”

Related Pelicans: Zion Williamson’ Knee Injury Unrelated to Weight

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Williamson is in “elite” physical condition, says the New Orleans Pelicans’ EVP of basketball ops.

The 19-year-old reported tightness in his knee last Wednesday, leading to the diagnosis of a torn lateral meniscus.

Per The Times-Picayune:

“We are extremely optimistic that he is going to be really, really good coming out of this,” Griffin said. “I’m a firm believer that a lot of times these things are blessings in disguise. You sorta reset the deck now and he gets to realize what’s in front of him and I think that’s a good thing.”

Griffin also discredited any suggestions that Williamson’s injury is related to his weight, calling the rookie phenom “an elite athlete” and a “freak of nature.”

“The notion that this happened because Zion is in poor condition is asinine,” Griffin said. He wasn’t in poor condition when he went 12 of 13 last week. That’s not what it is. He’s just a very unique body type and certainly from a physics perspective.”

Griffin compares Williamson’s body type and athleticism to that of Detroit Pistons’ forward Blake Griffin.

“Less weight, less torque is a theory,” David Griffin said. “But you look at a player like Blake Griffin who generated enormous torque and had the issues he had his career. It took a while for him to find stasis in his body and we think that could be the same with Zion.”

Related Zion Williamson Out 6-To-8 Weeks Following Surgery

The post Pelicans: Zion Williamson’ Knee Injury Unrelated to Weight appeared first on SLAM.

News of Williamson’s injury broke over the weekend after he was shutdown from preseason action. Not long after, however, it became clear that the organization felt fortunate that the injury wasn’t expected to be a long-term issue.

A six-week recovery timeline would put Williamson back on the court in early December. An eight-week timeframe would mean Williamson won’t make his regular season debut until mid-December.

Williamson had impressed in four games of preseason action prior to the injury, averaging 23.3 points and 6.5 rebounds in 27.2 minutes of action.

The post Zion Williamson Out 6-To-8 Weeks Following Surgery appeared first on SLAM.

It hovers around 90 degrees on a Sunday afternoon in the French Quarter of New Orleans, but the heat is not a deterrent. Not on game day.

The Saints are set to host the Cowboys on primetime. Black and gold jerseys flood Bourbon Street as early as 11:00 am. Cigar smoke and the smell of Willie’s Chicken Shack fill the air. Bars are packed hours before kickoff and multi-colored beads fly off second-floor balconies. Bands of trumpets, trombones and other massive horns spontaneously perform on sidewalks. A dance crew outside St. Louis Cathedral has a huge speaker set up and uses a microphone to interact with pedestrians. Groups of little kids bang on buckets with drum sticks.

This is the rich culture of the Big Easy. This is the kind of energy that the people possess—it just hasn’t always, or fully, been directed at basketball.

That’s beginning to change, though. You can feel it.

The new Pelicans core of Zion Williamson, Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram and Jrue Holiday is a major reason why. There are several other factors, including a dramatic change in the culture of the organization, from top to bottom. The prospect of winning—and winning for a long, long time—has the city galvanized. Locals are getting behind it. The team has sold more than 12,000 season-ticket equivalents for 2019-20, the highest mark in over a decade. Since the NBA draft, they have seen the second largest Instagram follower growth (29.5 percent) in the League, compared to merely 6 percent over the same period last year.

“We have an open practice coming up and they’ve had requests for more tickets than the Smoothie King Center has seats,” Coach Alvin Gentry says. “That would’ve never happened a few years ago. That alone tells me that we’re transitioning into something pretty good.”

“Pretty good” is an understatement.

The doors to the party are being flung open, and the rowdy fans of New Orleans are rushing in.

—

“Hear me out, hear me out, hear me out,” Zion Williamson pleads. “No one would expect him [Brandon Ingram] to do it, so he should do it. You feel me? It’s facts.”

Zion’s been told, er ordered, by his new teammates—Ingram, Ball and Holiday—to introduce the video you see above. There’s a playful fight as he resists.

“Or we could just give the viewers what they want,” Ball says to Zion, “which is you.”

He gives in. After a few takes (Zion can’t contain his laughter), we wrap up the video. Then the argument continues.

“But you the leader,” he says to Holiday, still giggling.

“But you the rook,” Holiday quickly fires back. “The rook does everything.”

Of course, this rook is a little bit different. A massive Jordan Brand billboard of him plastered outside the Smoothie King Center is evidence of that. So are the 4.8 million followers on Instagram, the endorsement deals and the countless viral clips dating back to high school.

His fate was sealed on May 14, 2019, the night of the NBA draft lottery. Despite having just a 6 percent chance at it, New Orleans won the No. 1 pick and the opportunity to select the most-hyped prospect since LeBron James.

A few days later, Alvin Gentry pulled up to Distinct Image Barbershop and left his car in the middle of the parking lot.

“I was cutting his son’s hair right before him,” remembers Rushawn Toppin, aka Ray Da Barber, who also cuts Zion, Lonzo and other players on the Pelicans and Saints. “And his son was like, ‘Dad, you just parked in the middle of the parking lot.’

“Alvin kind of walked in the barbershop and was like, ‘Look, I can do whatever I want. I got Zion!’”

The place erupted in laughter. It was a joke, sure, but it underscored an indisputable truth: Williamson is a complete game-changer—one that the Crescent City desperately craved. Some fans saw it as consolation for the looming departure of Anthony Davis. Others viewed it as a make-up for the missed pass interference call that may have cost the Saints a spot in Super Bowl LIII. Either way, it definitively ushered in a new era of NOLA basketball and had the downtown area on fire. Every inch of Fulton Street Square was filled for a “Draft Fest” celebration in June.

The buzz around the Pelicans, however, can’t be attributed solely to Zion. In the eventual trade for AD, the team netted Ball, Ingram and Josh Hart, three young and promising players. They scooped Jaxson Hayes and Nickeil Alexander-Walker, along with Williamson, in the 2019 Draft. Veterans JJ Redick and Derrick Favors joined shortly after; and the leader and longest-tenured member of the Pels, Holiday, is back to take the reins.

This isn’t your typical first home for a prospect as highly touted as Zion. This is a talented, deep squad with their sights set on making the playoffs now, even in a super competitive Western Conference.

“It’s going to be a fast, young team mixed in with some veterans who know how to play the game of basketball,” Ingram says. “The culture that we’re looking for is just being a team that is relentless and resilient, that takes the punches in the throat and still comes back strong.”

“Don’t back down from nobody,” Ball says of the group’s identity. “We got a new team, a lot of young guys, but I think we can go far.”

The chemistry is already apparent, despite the roster turnover. Holiday hosted the guys at his house in LA to work out over the summer and a large contingent were running pick-up and training together in New Orleans leading up to the official start of camp.

There’s a clear rapport among Holiday, Ingram, Ball and Williamson—the nucleus at the heart of the Pelicans’ bright future.

“I think [the chemistry’s] already there and developing,” Zion tells SLAM. “Jrue’s the leader and he just sets the tone. He’s such a great guy. You can go ask anybody around the League and they’d say how much of a great guy he is. And then, with Zo’s personality, and don’t let BI fool y’all—he’s a funny guy [laughs]. I think with our personalities and competitive edges to win, we’re going to be fine.”

The other guys like to pick on Zion, in the same way you’d pick on a younger sibling, only this younger sibling is 6-6 and 285 pounds. During our photo shoot, he spins the ball on his finger for a moment before Jrue promptly smacks it off. At one point, Ball jokes that he’d let Zion visit his music studio, but he’s not sure the big fella would fit.

“Is that considered bullying?” the rook asks with a smile. “I feel like that could hurt my self-esteem.”

The four of them mesh so smoothly it feels like a family sitcom. You completely forget that the dynamic is brand new, just a couple of months in the making. If it’s any reflection of how they’ll connect on the floor, then it bodes well for the Pelicans. Their individual styles of play, at least on paper, seem to complement each other in many respects.

Holiday, the captain, is coming off a season in which he averaged a career-best 21.2 points to go with 7.7 assists. He’s a versatile guard who can push the tempo, facilitate the offense and lock up on defense. The exact same description fits Ball. As a backcourt duo, they have the chance to be explosive, especially in the free-flowing system Coach Gentry has introduced.

“I would be disappointed if we don’t play with the greatest pace in the League,” says Gentry. “We did it last year and I think we’re much more equipped to do it better this year. And I would be disappointed if we’re not a top 10 defensive team.”

Throw in an extremely skilled scorer like Ingram (18.3 ppg in 2018-19) and a once-in-a-generation athlete like Williamson and the potential is scary. It will be a show every night, no question. The Pelicans are scheduled to appear on national TV a franchise-record 30 times this season—an insane number, given the size of their market (the population is around 400,000).

There were rumblings not too long ago that the state of basketball in New Orleans might spiral to a point where it made sense to move the organization elsewhere. Today, the rumblings are about an incredible road ahead and the hope of bringing something special to this city, something everyone is yearning for.

—

Roughly 12 hours after the Saints game ends, media day for the Pelicans begins. There’s a lot of talk about a different energy in the Oescher Sports Performance Center, which might sound like classic media day fodder, but it’s not. The people who’ve been here the longest—from players and coaches to PR and social media directors to the reporters covering the action and the team chefs working behind the scenes—swear it’s not. You can feel it, too.

Media day has never looked like this, as longtime credentialed writers like Oleh Kosel and Jake Madison affirm. Kosel can’t remember struggling so much to find parking.

It goes beyond just having Williamson and Ball and Ingram and Holiday and all the other pieces on this revamped roster. In truth, the seeds of the new era were planted months before that roster came together, when the franchise hired David Griffin as the Executive VP of Basketball Operations and principal owner Gayle Benson made clear her commitment to investing in the future. The front office has been expanded. The training facility has been upgraded. Griffin is establishing a tight-knit and inclusive culture that’s making an immediate impact.

“I see what they’re building here,” Derrick Favors tells SLAM. “They’re trying to build a family atmosphere and I wanted to be a part of it. It’s an exciting time to be a Pelicans fan and a Pelicans player.”

“People like to come here,” Holiday said, while seated in the press conference room at the practice venue. “The energy from everybody is positive and everybody wants to get better—not just the players, but the coaches and the training staff…To see all these guys come in and want the same goal, which is to get better themselves individually [and] as a team, has been inspiring.”

“Anyone who’s had the opportunity to be on campus the last month or so can feel the positive energy around the players, the coaches and our staff,” Griffin reinforced. “I think everybody can sense that there’s something special here potentially. I think, when I look at it, it’s an energy that’s wholly unique in my basketball career.”

That energy is permeating into the greater community and has been strengthened by an embrace from players like Zion, who’s appeared on the sidelines of LSU, Tulane and Saints games. There exists suddenly, even amid football season, a genuine excitement about basketball. More merchandise is up in stores. More Pelicans flags hang from windows. You hear more talk about it in barbershops, bars and restaurants.

“Even at that Saints game against the Cowboys,” Madison says. “If you walked in there, there was a lot more red for a game between two teams that don’t have any red in their [color schemes].”

“This is the most exciting team ever…EVER!” exclaims NOLA artist and producer Chase N. Cache. Just before our conversation ends, he adds: “And we’re making that eighth seed. I’m sorry to the Sacramento Kings, but we’re taking that.”

“I feel like we’re going to get us a ring finally and once we get that ring, it’s gonna take the city up 10 notches,” says New Orleans-based entrepreneur Larry Morrow. “I remember when the Saints won our first Super Bowl, you got people second lining and dancing. We have a lot of culture, so we celebrate with brass bands, with second lines, people dancing to music, just running through the streets; they block off everything, people might be on top of cars—it’s a celebration. And I think we’re preparing for that now because I know that we’re going to be able to go far with this young team.”

The Pelicans have had success in the past (seven playoff berths in 17 seasons), but never prolonged success. It’s why they’ve struggled to capture the spirit of their passionate hometown. With Jrue, Zion, Zo and Ingram, and a rock-solid culture to fall back on, that tide is turning.

“We’re going to establish what we call sustainable winning,” Gentry says. “That means winning over the course of a lot of years. I think that guys see that and buy into it.”

The city of New Orleans sees it, too, and they’re definitely buying into it.

So let the good times roll.

—

GRAB YOUR COPY OF SLAM 224 FEATURING THE PELICANS

Alex Squadron is an Associate Editor at SLAM. Follow him on Twitter @asquad510.

Photos by Matthew Coughlin and via Getty Images.

The post WELCOME TO THE PARTY: The New Orleans Pelicans Are In the Building ⚜️ appeared first on SLAM.

Update #1, 12:05 pm: Williamson will undergo additional evaluations on his right knee today, Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports reports, and possibly more tomorrow. He reports that the franchise is relieved Williamson has avoided any major long-term issues.

The New Orleans Pelicans expect to miss Zion Williamson for a period of weeks to begin the season, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reports. Williamson sat out the Pels final preseason game with knee soreness.

Wojnarowski notes that the Pelicans have no shortage of confidence that the forward will have a full recovery but are treating the injury with an abundance of caution.

Williamson wasted no time making an impact during the four preseason games that he did play, finishing as the No. 4 scorer in preseason with 23.3 points per game.

This isn’t Williamson’s first struggle with a knee injury, the Duke standout famously injured his knee during a college game last season when his shoe broke in the middle of an ACC contest. Then was shelved again during summer league after bumping his knee with an opponent.

The post Zion Williamson To Miss Weeks At Start Of Season appeared first on SLAM.

“We are comparing Zion to Zion,” Gentry told reporters after making the inevitable comparison himself.

The 19-year-old rookie made his preseason debut Monday night for New Orleans, finishing with 16 points, seven rebounds, three assists and three steals in a 133-109 road win over the Atlanta Hawks.

Per ESPN:

“There’s very few guys — at 19 years old — who can come in and impact this league,” Gentry said. “There’s one in California but there’s also not anybody like him.”

And Williamson’s debut scheduling wasn’t an accident. After all, 16 years ago to the day, James made his NBA preseason debut.

“They shouldn’t do that [comparing],” Gentry said. “We are not doing that. We are comparing Zion to Zion. We want Zion to be the best Zion Williamson that he can be. Not anybody else. We want him to be the best basketball player he can become using his name and no comparison.”

He continued: “I know that it’s inevitable that that’s going to be the case, but we are not drinking that Kool-Aid.”

Related Zion Williamson: ‘This Isn’t High School or College Anymore’

The post Alvin Gentry: Don’t Compare Zion Williamson to LeBron James appeared first on SLAM.

Williamson, 19, thrilled fans with three first-half dunks.

Zion and the Pelicans drew a crowd of 15,441 to an otherwise meaningless exhibition game.

Per The AP:

“This isn’t high school or college anymore,” Williamson said. “You’ve got to go up strong. So I went up strong and I was able to finish.”

Of course, the score was irrelevant. This was chance to see the future of the NBA for the first time — not counting his brief stint in the Las Vegas Summer League — and Williamson did not disappoint, though he’s not close to being a finished product after just one college season at Duke. He missed a pair of 3-point attempts, turned it over four times and looked a bit lost defensively.

“You know me,” he said, breaking into a big smile. “It was a lot of fun. The first NBA game. It’s not going to count against the record. But the first one of hopefully many. I’m glad I could get that one under my belt.”

The Hawks sent out No. 5 pick De’Andre Hunter as part of their starting lineup, and brought 10th selection Cam Reddish — Williamson’s Duke teammate — off the bench. The Pelicans also have No. 8 choice Jaxson Hayes.

“It’s crazy,” Williamson said. “Just a few months ago, we were in college together, just chillin’ and having fun with each other, playing in games, and now we’re pros. It was a different feel for sure. But it was great seeing him.”

Related Zion Williamson: NBA Spacing ‘Almost Like a Dream Come True’

The post Zion Williamson: ‘This Isn’t High School or College Anymore’ appeared first on SLAM.

“We thought about how can we make this one of the lightest gameshoes ever?” Kuerbis says of the midsole. They’re calling it the tunnel, that excavated part of the 34. “‘Let’s see what we don’t need.’ We do that a lot in the upper where we make pretty minimal uppers but we’ve never [done this.] It’s pretty amazing that you can actually see through the shoe and see the Zoom.”

Because in addition to removing the midsole, Kuerbis and Klein also came up with the Jordan Eclipse Plate. It gives the 34 a bridge from midfoot to forefoot and it helps make the sneaker bouncy. 

“This to me is one of the most responsive shoes I’ve had,” Blake Griffin tells SLAM about the new joints. “In terms of everything you need. Lightweight, grip, you feel like you get a bounce to it. I’ve been in a big man shoe for a while,” he says, referencing his years of wearing the Jordan Super.Fly. “This is a shoe that can crossover and hit both playing styles.”

Griffin, along with newcomers Zion Williamson and Jayson Tatum, will be some of the hoopers to headline the 34. Though Williamson and Tatum weren’t able to give feedback to Kuerbis, Griffin was. 

“I first saw this in March of 2019,” Griffin tells SLAM. “We talked about concepts earlier than that but I don’t think I saw a pair on a screen until Spring of 2019. I first held it in June. It’s crazy to see the shoe transform over time and how no detail is too small. When I first came to the Brand, I would weartest a shoe and I’d tell them my things and I’d be like, ‘Yeah, this is small.’ And they encourage you to tell every single detail.”

All the details help Klein on his never-ending journey to discovering new footwear technology. Klein, just in the past year, has worked on the 34, the Nike Adapt BB and the Freak 1. 

“Now what we’re doing is re-thinking that whole notion of what our next Flight Plate is,” Klein says. “To offer a little bit more lightweight, much more responsiveness and that freedom of motion.”

Enter the Eclipse Plate. 

“We took the thinking on Flight Plate and turned it to the side,” Kuerbis adds. “Now, whereas in the past we had the Flight Speed Plate over the airbag, we are taking it and turning it to the side, which allows you to do something completely different and unlock the Zoom, which we’ve never really done before.”

“The Eclipse Plate is more than just something that looks cool,” Tatum says. “It definitely gives you that extra cushioning for explosiveness.”

“These bags are meant to be inside a shoe and kind of caged up,” Klein says. But not on the 34. 

“Unlocking the Zoom is really about just letting it breathe and not contain it,” Kuerbis says. 

The forefoot Zoom can be seen underfoot, right at the top of the tunnel. The cavities that the tunnel creates is what allows the unlocked Zoom to expand. 

“I love the sleekness of the shoe,” New York Liberty guard Kia Nurse says. “I love the new design element that we have with the Eclipse Plate. That’s something that hasn’t been done before. That’s what you expect from an Air Jordan.”

The rest of the 34 is rounded out by a herringbone traction pattern, a decoupled heel unit, a netted upper and a brand new woven located underneath that netting. 

“Behind [the netting] is the magic,” Klein says. “A single layer material that is a performance woven that we’ve engineered to hold the strength.” 

There’s a callback to the Air Jordan IV that can be seen on the tongue, too. The famous FLIGHT typeface so closely associated with the IV is now on the 34. Kuerbis and Klein also went back and looked at the Air Jordan XI and the Air Jordan XX8. The full-length plate that ran through the XI helped them out in cooking up the 34. And the XX8 also had “a little bit of a gap around that bag, allowing it to deflect and move so we said we want to learn from that,” Klein says. 

“I want a shoe that is comfortable, durable, explosive and stylish,” Williamson says. “The 34 delivers on all of this.”

“All very minimal,” Klein says. “Every thought was about taking out what you don’t need.”

—

Related

ZION WILLIAMSON ANNOUNCES HE’S SIGNED WITH JORDAN BRAND

JAYSON TATUM ON SIGNING WITH JORDAN BRAND

RARE AIR: KIA NURSE IS LIVING OUT HER DREAM WITH JORDAN BRAND

The post Inside the Design of the Air Jordan 34 appeared first on SLAM.

Williamson also believes that his good friend and former Duke teammate is well-suited to handle the pressure cooker that is New York City basketball.

Barrett has spent much of the offseason working to improve his ability to finish at the rim after he “missed way too many layups” in Summer League.

Per SNY:

“(Knicks fans) can expect that they’re getting a killer,” Zion Williamson said in an interview with SNY at Panini’s NBA Rookie Photo Shoot on Sunday. “For the people that are trying to look down on him, RJ’s been through worse. He knows how to battle through it and he’s going to bring the city everything he’s got.”

As a 19-year-old rookie, Barrett will undoubtedly go through ups and downs this season. Each of his games will be heavily scrutinized because he’s in the biggest media market in the country. So there will be reactions (and overreactions) to everything he does.

“I felt like that really got my mojo going. So just trying to bring that into training camp is going to be good,” Barrett said on Sunday at the Panini Rookie Photo Shoot.

One thing Barrett has been working on since Summer League? Finishing at the basket.

“I missed way too many layups (in Summer League),” Barrett said.

Related R.J. Barrett to Knicks Fans: ‘Let’s Try to Get Back to That Championship Way’

The post Zion Williamson: Knicks Getting a ‘Killer’ in RJ Barrett appeared first on SLAM.

“I feel incredibly blessed to be a part of the Jordan Brand family,” Williamson says via Nike. “Since I was a kid, I dreamed of making it to the league and having the type of impact on the game Michael Jordan had and continues to have today. He was one of those special athletes I looked up to, and I really can’t express how happy and excited I am for this journey.”

“Zion’s incredible determination, character and play are inspiring,” Michael Jordan said via Nike. “He’s an essential part of the new talent that will help lead the brand into the future. He told us he would ‘shock the world,’ and asked us to believe him. We do.”

Stay tuned to see the sneakers that Williamson will be lacing up during his rookie season.

The post Zion Williamson Announces He’s Signed with Jordan Brand appeared first on SLAM.

Ball, 21, says being in the NBA a couple of years prepared him for the possibility of getting moved.

Lonzo adds that he’s looking forward to teaming up with heralded rookie Zion Williamson.

Per ESPN:

“I was kind of excited, honestly,” Ball told ESPN of his first reaction to the trade, after filming Saturday for the PUBG Mobile Team Up Superstar Showdown event. “I kind of figured someone was going to get moved soon enough. I knew Anthony Davis wanted to come bad. Anytime you can get a guy like that, you are going to have to do what you have to do to get him. So I was kind of already just waiting for it, honestly, and I was happy to go with two guys I am comfortable with in B.I. [Brandon Ingram] and JHart [Josh Hart]. I am excited to see what we can do.

“I tell people when I was a rookie, I probably would have been sad,” Ball added of being traded. “Just being from L.A., having my whole family here and wanting to be a Laker. But being in the league for two years, knowing it’s a business, as long you get to play, that’s a blessing in itself. I’m excited to get started.”

On Saturday, the Lakers introduced Davis as their latest All-Star big man to join the franchise. Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka opened the news conference by thanking several people, including Ball, Ingram and Hart.

“Obviously, injuries kind of messed up things a little bit,” Ball said of his Lakers tenure. “But you take the bumps with the bruises and keep moving forward. Only been in the league for two years and looking forward to this third year in New Orleans, get a fresh start and show people what I can do.

“I know New Orleans is excited to have me, and I’m excited to get started,” Ball added. “Moving to a new team, a new situation, a new organization, new coaches, new everything — it’s a refresh, getting back to playing basketball how I know I can play.”

Related Lonzo Ball: ‘If I Get Traded, Then I Get Traded’

The post Lonzo Ball Ready for ‘Fresh Start’ With the Pelicans appeared first on SLAM.

The Pelicans are taking a “precautionary” approach with the prized top pick in this summer’s NBA Draft, after he knocked knees with an opposing player.

Williamson, 19, admits he’s frustrated by having to sit out games, but is focused on preparing for his regular season debut.

Per ESPN:

“It was more precautionary,” Williamson said of sitting out of the remainder of Las Vegas Summer League.

Now that he isn’t playing any more games in Las Vegas, Williamson said his goal is to “hone his craft” and “get ready for the season.” Williamson said it is “frustrating” to not be playing any more Summer League games.

“I’m a competitor,” Williamson said. “Whenever I can play, I just want to play.”

Williamson came into summer league hovering around 284 lbs. When asked whether or not he has any specific goals regarding his weight and getting into game shape, Williamson refrained from providing specific goals.

“I’ll let the trainers help me with that,” Williamson said.

Related Zion Williamson: NBA Spacing ‘Almost Like a Dream Come True’

The post Zion Williamson: Sitting Out Summer League ‘Precautionary’ appeared first on SLAM.

Pelicans rookie Zion Williamson took a knee-to-knee hit in the first half of his summer league debut and did not return to the game. Cassidy Hubbarth of ESPN reported that the Pels made the decision prior to the game’s cancellation due to an earthquake.

Williamson played nine minutes before he was sidelined and ultimately shelved for precautionary reasons and made a handful of memorable dunks that ought to have satiated the capacity crowd that devoured tickets to the match.

Though he was able to showcase his trademark power, his lasting stat line left some to be desired as he finished the contest with a -15 rating.

Earlier in the day, Sports Illustrated’s Jake Fischer wrote that the Pels were already likely to rest their first-overall pick in the second leg of their back-to-back, so don’t be alarmed if the big man doesn’t suit up at all on Saturday.

The post Zion Williamson Shut Down In Summer League Opener After Knee-To-Knee Hit appeared first on SLAM.

The time has arrived for NBA fans to get their first official big league taste of Zion Williamson. The 2019 first-overall pick will make his summer league debut in Las Vegas tonight at 9:30 pm EST.

Williamson won’t be alone when he lines up to tip-off against R.J. Barrett and the New York Knicks though, here are a few of the notable teammates that will join him on the July grind.

If you can manage to take your eyes off the 285-pound runaway train in his highly anticipated debut don’t forget to check out his supporting crew.

Trevon Bluiett

A common gripe for college fans eager to witness Williamson’s magic was that Duke simply didn’t surround him with enough three-point shooting to open the floor. He won’t have that issue in Las Vegas with a handful of long-range specialists in the lineup beside him. Trevon Bluiett, chief among those, shot .375 on 5.7 three-point attempts per game while signed to a two-way deal with the Pels in 2018-19.

Zylan Cheatham

It didn’t take long after the NBA Draft for Cheatham to come to terms with a squad on a two-way contract. The Arizona State Sun Devil latched on with the Pels and will hope to prove that he’s worth more than 45 looks at the big league level. Cheatham will have his work cut out for him in a suddenly crowded frontcourt but he’s an athletic forward that can hit the boards and take his man off the dribble.

Kenrich Williams

Williams was a pleasant surprise for a destitute franchise during the grim 2018-19 window between Anthony Davis’ trade request and the NBA lottery. The two-way player came alive in the second half of the season, establishing himself as a potential rotation piece that can contribute across the board. While Williams will have his work cut out for him carving out a role in New Orleans’ revamped lineup, he’s an affordable, 24-year-old depth piece that doesn’t need the ball in his hands to contribute.

Christian Wood

Wood is a G League legend and has been for years now. Dude averaged 29.3 points and 14.0 rebounds per game in 2018-19. The catch, however, was that he hadn’t shown that the G League dominance could translate to success at the big league level. In 2018-19, Wood did just that (sort of). Including only games where Wood played at least 10 minutes, he averaged 17.4 points and 8.4 rebounds. The Pels won’t need Wood to channel his inner-Anthony Davis in New Orleans but he could be in line for a battle for third-string duties with Jahlil Okafor.

The post NOLA’s Supporting Cast For Zion Williamson’s Summer League Debut appeared first on SLAM.

The top pick in this summer’s draft says “it’s almost like a dream come true.”

Williamson, 18, adds that he’s looking forward to showcasing more of his offensive arsenal in New Orleans.

Per the Pelicans’ team website:

“I do like the spacing a lot more,” said the 18-year-old, whose quick first step and athleticism allow him to pivot around defenders for lefty dunks. “(Defenders) can’t really (just) stand in the paint, so it gives me a lot more room to operate.

“The three-point line does create more spacing, because everybody can shoot. You can’t really help off too much, otherwise it’s an open three. I love the spacing. It’s almost like a dream come true for me. Because every time I attack the basket, there is space for me.”

At Duke, Williamson often created offense for himself or others from the perimeter or mid-range area by relying on his varied skills, including the ability to drive past defenders or power his way to the basket. He noted after Tuesday’s practice that he’s looking forward to potentially showing another dimension of his game, one that will originate closer to the paint and the rim.

“I feel like I don’t get enough credit for my low-post game,” he said. “I can attack off the wing, I can attack from up top, but in college it’s a little different, because everyone can help over (defensively). In the NBA, they can help over, but not really (as much), so I’m able to show more of my skill.”

Related Pelicans: Zion Williamson Not ‘Here to Save This Franchise’

The post Zion Williamson: NBA Spacing ‘Almost Like a Dream Come True’ appeared first on SLAM.

Williamson, the top pick in Thursday night’s NBA Draft, is “here to join this family.”

The Pels have agreed to trade Anthony Davis to the Los Angeles Lakers after he publicly demanded it back in February, and consider Zion’s highly-anticipated arrival a “watershed moment for us as a franchise.”

Per ESPN:

“One of the very first things I said to our staff in our first meeting was, ‘Someone make the case to me for Zion Williamson,'” Griffin said. “They thought I was kidding. I said no, seriously, talk me into Williamson and it took a while for anyone to formulate words. It is hard for people to express it.”

Selecting Williamson first was a predictable move, but a win the smarting Pelicans desperately needed.

“Oh you can hear people say things like, ‘Oh, that it was likely I was going to go No. 1,’ but I guess you don’t know until you actually go through it,” Williamson told reporters in New York. “Hearing my name called and I was able to make it on stage without a tear, shake the commissioner’s hand, but in the interview with my mom standing beside me, and my emotions just took over.”

Williamson, who has drawn comparisons to a young LeBron James, might not transform the franchise overnight. After all, he is only 18 years old.

“This is Jrue Holiday’s team,” Griffin said. “Zion is going to be learning how to win at a really high level. At some point, if there is a time that the baton gets passed in terms of who is expected to carry us to win games, it will. That is not now. Let Zion be that kid. Don’t write this like he is here to save this franchise. He is not. He is here to join this family.”

Related Zion Williamson: ‘I’m Ready to Be the Face of a Team’

The post Pelicans: Zion Williamson Not ‘Here to Save This Franchise’ appeared first on SLAM.

A few months ago, we chilled with Williamson at Duke for our SLAM 222 cover shoot.

The post Zion Williamson is the Most POWERFUL DUNKER in Rookie Class! 💪🏽 NBA Draft’s #1 Pick appeared first on SLAM.

That squad will likely be the New Orleans Pelicans, who recently traded superstar big man Anthony Davis to the Los Angeles Lakers.

Williamson addressed the AD blockbuster with reporters Wednesday: “I don’t know if it was like a life-changing thing …”

Zion has very ambitious career goals, but insists that he’s a “simple guy.”

Per The Times-Picayune:

Draft night suit? “I’m a simple guy. I just want to walk across the stage, grab a hat and shake the commissioner’s hand. I’m not really into all of that.”

How does he unwind away from the basketball court? “I’m a simple guy. I’ll probably be on the phone, talking to my friends. I just like to be around my bros, be around friends in general. As long as I’m around my friends, my closest friends, I’m fine.”

Draft night celebration? “I’m a simple guy. I’ll probably go get some dinner with my family and call it a night. I’m a very simple guy.”

When Williamson finally arrives in New Orleans, he’ll become the new face of the Pelicans’ franchise after Anthony Davis was dealt away last weekend.

“I am ready,” Williamson said. “I think everybody has that mindset. I think if somebody doesn’t have that mindset, then I don’t know if they’re playing the right sport. Whether I’m the face or not, I’m just ready to help my team win.”

Related BELIEVE THE HYPE: Zion Williamson Is Gonna Shock the World

The post Zion Williamson: ‘I’m Ready to Be the Face of a Team’ appeared first on SLAM.

Three Duke Blue Devils, a pair of prolific point guard prospects and two wings that squared off in the NCAA Tournament finale will all start making preparations for their draft day drip.

A total of 20 players were invited to the green room for last year’s draft so it stands to reason that the league would get back to around that number for 2019.

Green Room Invites
R.J. Barrett
Jarrett Culver
Darius Garland
Jaxson Hayes
De’Andre Hunter
Ja Morant
Cam Reddish
Coby White
Zion Williamson

Four of those players have or have recently dealt with injury, we broke down the injury statuses of NBA Draft prospects earlier this week.

To get an idea of the next wave of lottery prospects that could receive green invitations check out our initial lottery mock draft.

We’ll weigh in again when the rest of the invitations are issued and revealed.

The post Nine Draft Candidates Sent Green Room Invites appeared first on SLAM.

THE FUTURE IS NOW.

The latest issue of SLAM highlights the next generation of hoopers, from the 8th grade all the way up to the pros. We got big features on Zion Williamson, Ja Morant, LaMelo Ball, Napheesa Collier, Hailey Van Lith, Mikey Williams and much, much more. This mag also includes our high school All-Americans and a pullout poster of Damian Lillard’s legendary playoff game-winner.

Head to our online store to cop, peep the cover stories at the links below and stay posted for more dope content over the next few weeks!

BELIEVE THE HYPE: Zion Williamson Is Gonna Shock the World

BRAND NEW WAVE: LaMelo Ball Is Doing It His Way

DREAMS 2 REALITY: Ja Morant Got It Out the Mud

The post SLAM 222 Is On Sale Now 🔮 appeared first on SLAM.

That doesn’t mean it will be simple, however, to determine AD’s future in NOLA.

The Pelicans will, of course, select Zion Williamson with the first overall pick later this summer, which “jump-starts the process” for the front-office, according to general manager David Griffin.

Per ESPN:

“They started calling out the numbers. We obviously got this seed sheet, and I am trying to look through it and find out our numbers,” Gentry said afterward. “I find the first number, then the second number and then the third, and I’m like, ‘Oh s—.’

“The fourth one comes up, I try to look at all our combinations and then they said, ‘The winner is the New Orleans Pelicans.’ And I said, ‘F— yeah!’ And then I said, ‘Excuse me, I’m sorry.'”

Williamson, who averaged 21.8 points and 8.8 rebounds as a true freshman for Duke last season, sat in the front row when the draft lottery took place in Chicago.

“Guys, the one thing you got to understand is, [Davis] is still on our roster,” Gentry said. “He is on our roster. All of that will take care of itself. I’m not worried about it. I know Griff has some plans to talk to him, and it will be fine.”

Asked on a conference call with local reporters if he would require a “king’s ransom” in order to trade Davis, Griffin replied, “From my perspective, I want Anthony Davis to want what we’re doing. I want Anthony Davis to want to be part of this. And I’m not focused on much of anything other than, ‘Let’s get better tomorrow.’ If Anthony wants to buy into that, that’s fantastic. And if he doesn’t, then we’ll deal with it when it’s appropriate.”

Related Alvin Gentry: Anthony Davis ‘Got Some Bad Advice’

The post Alvin Gentry: Anthony Davis Situation ‘Will Take Care of Itself’ appeared first on SLAM.

Immediately after the lottery order for the 2019 NBA Draft was revealed on Tuesday night, the SLAM staff knocked out a mock. Each person was assigned a team prior to the event and then asked to quickly reassess once the results were in.

Here’s what we came up with:

Our projected No. 1 and No. 2 overall picks both graced the cover of the latest issue of SLAM. Make sure to check out the Zion Williamson story and the Ja Morant story.

Head to our store to cop a mag as well!

The post SLAM 2019 Lottery Mock Draft 1.0 🧐 appeared first on SLAM.

It’s the last Sunday of April, and with the 2019 NBA Draft less than eight weeks away, the League has recently announced the 233 early entry candidates who have thrown their names into the hat hoping to hear them called at Barclays Center in June.  

With the NBA draft early entry deadline in the rearview mirror, most hopefuls who submitted their paperwork to the League office have by now signed with an agent and have begun their pre-draft training regimen. The process usually involves spending the two months leading up to the draft at expansive training facilities provided by their respective agents, preparing for the looming combine and individual team workouts in the coming weeks.   

Yet on this warm spring day, the projected No. 1 pick in this year’s draft, the one who many consider the most highly touted prospect in the past decade, is actually still on a college campus preparing for finals week.

Yes, Zion Williamson is still on campus heading into May, and tomorrow he has a PowerPoint presentation as part of a group project in his “Sexual Pleasures of the Modern World” class. The topic is sex work and Zion and his classmates have spent the past couple of months researching the subject in the lead-up to the class presentation. 

“It’s only about six groups. PowerPoint, videos, a lot. There is no small part. You’re going to have to talk a lot,” says the 6-7 forward.

Seeing the undisputed No. 1 pick in the upcoming draft still walking around campus, talking about his upcoming class presentations while everyone on the internet attempts to project just how much the 18-year-old could potentially earn in endorsement deals is not really what you’d expect.

At Duke he has taken his interest in performing arts and creative industries and has pursued classes that further expand on those areas. With his face brimming in excitement, he begins to list off his favorite classes at the Durham institution.

“My favorite class was History of Hip-Hop, taught by [music producer] 9th Wonder and professor Mark Anthony Neal,” says the Spartanburg, SC native.

He wastes little time in explaining what he’s learned there.

“I love how people from today’s generation take samples from classics that people probably don’t even know [and] put it in their music and will call it a banger. One example for me would be with Alicia Keys—9th Wonder taught me this one—her song ‘You Don’t Know My Name,’ she got a sample from a song called ‘Let Me Prove My Love To You’ by The Main Ingredient. Nobody knew who The Main Ingredient was from today’s generation. That’s what makes me love music.”

Then there’s the “Copy of Writing 101: The Disney Version” class, which focuses on studying classic Disney films and then conducting semiotic analysis on them. It’s a course his mother, Sharonda Sampson, remembers Zion constantly raving about.

“You’re not watching it from a kid’s perspective,” says Zion. “You’re watching it [looking for] what signs is Disney giving away, what are they trying to promote here? From a racial standpoint, from a political standpoint—are they trying to prove something to the world? With The Princess and the Frog—a black princess…you don’t see that very often so that was a message.”

Every Tuesday and Thursday morning there was also “The Theater Today” class, where “basically we would watch clips about people performing in theaters and then we would go do it, too. I’m not good, but I had a lot of fun doing it,” he says, trying to contain his laughter.

As he walks you through some of his favorite classes at Duke, the genuine joy he gets from just talking about the courses is obvious. The irony of him still being on campus this late into the spring—as he prepares for finals week while most people in his position would have (and have) left right after the final buzzer, as is usually the case for a prospect of his status—is that just a couple of months earlier, the whole world was telling him that there was no reason for him to even finish off the basketball season with the team.

After the UNC game on February 20, when Zion’s left foot famously blew through his sneaker while spraining his right knee in the process, current and former NBA players encouraged Zion to shut it down for the season.   

Denver Nuggets guard Isaiah Thomas tweeted: “Too much on the line to be messing with college if you got a legit chance to turn pro. One injury can change somebody career, Zion sit yo ass down lol and we will be ready for you in the big boy league #LookingOutForThePlayers.”

Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young tweeted: “Zion Need To Chill Out The Rest Of Season…”

Hall of Famer Scottie Pippen said: “I think he’s done enough for college basketball that it’s more about him personally now, and I think for him as a young player, I would shut it down. I would stop playing because I feel that he could risk a major injury that could really hurt his career.”

DeMarcus Cousins added: “My advice to him is do what’s best for you and your family. Obviously, college isn’t. It does nothing for you at this point. You’ve proven you’re the No. 1 pick coming out and proven your talent.”

Forget the typical leaving campus after the season ends move. Just leave the team in the middle of the season, they said. You’re too good to even be there in the first place, they said.

Little did they know that not only did Zion have every intention of playing with his team ’til the very last whistle, he also had every bit of intention to remain a regular student on campus ’til the very last final exam/presentation.

“At the end of the day, no matter who the person is, everybody is entitled to their own opinion. I appreciate the input. I really do. It gives me a heads up of where I’m at. But I made a commitment to my brothers. So if I was to sit out, that’d be very selfish on my part,” Zion says. “And I couldn’t do that. Sitting on the sideline and watching your brothers battle without you, knowing you can be affecting the game, it hurts. I made a commitment so I wasn’t going back on my word. So I knew I was coming back the whole time.

“I was very surprised ’cause it turned into something I didn’t even think—that’s the last thing I thought would happen. It wasn’t even a thought. It was probably something we looked at, somebody saying I should sit down—haha, that’s funny. I’m coming back.”

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Just 48 hours after seeing his college career end in the Elite 8 of the NCAA Tournament, after a 1-point loss to Michigan State, Zion was not only back on campus being a regular student, he was also running pickup at the school’s rec center with regular students.

In a video that went viral, Zion lobs the ball off the backboard to himself for a two-handed dunk in a nondescript gym amidst an otherwise normal-ish pick-up game. (Minus, you know, a future No. 1 pick.) He slammed it so hard that the iron structure that holds the goal up and is attached to the concrete wall completely gave in and began dangling. He had broken the goal. Not the rim, but the entire actual goal that was attached to the wall.

It’s this kind of authentic approach to the game that has made Zion such a likeable and respectable figure. The love for basketball seems genuine. Money doesn’t appear to be the driving force. Otherwise, shutting it down midseason would have been a real consideration. It never was. Otherwise, waiting ’til that sneaker deal is signed and sealed before attempting to jump again (as many fans suggested when the rec center video went viral) would have gotten in the way of giving random Duke students at the Brodie Center a story they’ll tell their kids about one day.

“You get this college experience once,” he says. “If you’re in a situation like mine, where you’re one and done, I’m just trying to make the most of what I got. I love Duke, and honestly, I don’t want to leave. If I didn’t have as much at stake, I probably would stay for another year. But I can’t.

“Being at Duke was a dream come true for me. Everything about it. Looking to the sidelines, Whoa, that’s Coach K I’m playing for! Coach K is looking at me [and] telling me I’m built for this moment. I have a true brotherhood on and off the court. Everything was just a movie,” he says. “This was the best year of my life. So if I could come back for a second year I would, but unfortunately that’s just not the reality we live in. The reality we live in is [that] my ultimate dream is the NBA. It’s what I’ve been dreaming about as a kid so I have to pursue that. And I have to take care of my family.”

Zion announced that he was entering the 2019 NBA Draft on April 15, just six days before the NBA early entry eligibility deadline expired. He was the last member of the team to announce his decision. And according to his stepfather, Lee Anderson, it took some nudging from the family to get him to finally sit in front of the camera and announce his decision.

“He waited until the last minute to do it. He really, really didn’t want to say goodbye,” says Anderson. “But he knew that the time had come for him to do that. He was a little bit remorseful about doing it. He was just kind of sad. We kept calling him and saying, ‘Hey Zion, you have a deadline to meet. You need to make sure you get it done by this time.’ He’d say, ‘Don’t worry. I’ll get it. I’ll do it.’ He wasn’t in no hurry to get it done. So I just told my wife to let him be. Give him time.” 

Adds Zion, “When I was by myself, I was like, You know what? Maybe. What would be the worst if I came back for a second year? And my teammates [would] look at me and go, ‘We know you love this place but you gotta do what’s best for you and your family. Nobody is going to hate you for this.’

“I remember I was doing my video announcing I was declaring for the draft. And I didn’t want to do the video. I don’t want to leave. I love everything about Duke. If people think I’m BS-ing or not telling the truth—that’s them.”

In a historic campaign that will go down as one of the most dominating seasons ever by a college freshman, Zion averaged 22.6 points, 8.9 rebounds, 2.1 steals and 1.8 blocks per game. He shot 68 percent from the floor. That’s the highest field goal percentage ever by a freshman. He joined Kevin Durant and Anthony Davis as the only freshmen to have ever collected over 500 points, 50 steals and 50 blocks in a season. He was the third freshman to ever win Naismith National Player of the Year. He became the first college player ever to win ACC POY, ACC ROY and ACC Tournament MVP. He became the first player to ever average 22 points per game while having an effective FG% over .700. His 40.8 PER was the best player efficiency rating in 20 years.

The NBA player comparisons have been nonstop. He’s heard them all. 

LeBron. Barkley. Blake Griffin. Shawn Kemp. Yet he hasn’t given it too much of his attention. Nor does he spend too much time thinking about what and whom he wants his game to resemble in the League. There’s just one lone goal in mind.

“It’s pinned on my Twitter. I’m going to shock the world. You can think what you want. You can look at the prototypical positions, you can do that, but I’m just going to be myself and I’m going to keep doing that,” he says.

“I’m just trying to be myself. I’m not trying to be the next nobody. I’m trying to be the first Zion and the last Zion.” 

—

GRAB YOUR COPY OF SLAM 222 FEATURING ZION

Franklyn Calle is an Associate Editor at SLAM. Follow him on Twitter @FrankieC7. 

Portraits by Matthew Coughlin and via Getty.

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Williamson wasted no time proving at the collegiate level that he was as tantalizing an NBA prospect as scouts expected him to be prior to the 2018-19 season. His combination of size and explosiveness is unprecedented in basketball.

Williamson averaged 22.6 points and 8.9 rebounds per game this year while guiding the Blue Devils to an appearance in the Elite Eight. He’ll now turn his attention to making whichever NBA team wins the lottery a very happy franchise.

With the 2018-19 NBA regular season now in the books and the tie-breakers officially broken, fans can salivate at the odds their team has of landing the No. 1 pick. The New York Knicks, Cleveland Cavaliers and Phoenix Suns have the best shot, each with a 14% chance.

The 6’7″, 285-pound, 18-year-old has elite strength with the athleticism and dribbling skills to be a game changer at the professional level. He finished the season in a tier unto himself on Tankathon’s NBA Draft Big Board.

The post Top Prospect Zion Williamson Declares For Draft appeared first on SLAM.

Williamson, who suffered a knee injury back in February, will play tonight against Syracuse at 6 p.m. PST in the quarterfinals of the ACC Tournament. With Duke at full strength, the Blue Devils begin their quest to run through their competition to bring a national championship back to Durham.

SLAM Fam, y’all have Duke to win it all?

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