Earlier this year, there were some questions about Zion Williamson’s commitment to the New Orleans Pelicans.
But given some recent comments from the Pelicans front office and Zion himself, it appears the two sides are ready to come to a longterm agreement.
When Zion was asked about the ongoing NBA Finals between the Boston Celtics and Golden State Warriors, he said his focus is solely on the upcoming season in New Orleans.
“Honestly, I ain’t paying too much attention to the games right now. I’ll look at who won,” he explained, per New Orleans insider Rod Walker. “Pels, baby. Pels in the first round. That’s all I needed to see to really be excited to get back out there.”
This week, Pelicans vice president of basketball operations David Griffin said giving Zion a max contract is an “easy decision.” Earlier this year, the 21-year-old big man said if the Pelicans offered him a longterm extension, he “couldn’t sign it fast enough.”
Zion missed the entirety of the 2021-22 season after he suffered a preseason foot injury. The year prior, he notched his first All-Star selection behind 27.0 points and 7.2 rebounds per game.
Hopefully, Zion can remain healthy throughout the Pelicans’ 2022-23 campaign.