Zion Williamson Articles - Page 7

The New Orleans Pelicans knew they had to make some upgrades this summer. Executive Vice President David Griffin stressed the point during the team’s exit interviews. Being swept out of the NBA Playoffs by the Oklahoma City Thunder exposed some significant weaknesses. Plugging those holes immediately became the priority in a highly competitive Western Conference. […]

The New Orleans Pelicans are at a pivotal juncture with Zion Williamson entering his prime. With a roster brimming with talent, head coach Willie Green faces the challenge of optimizing rotations to maximize team performance. One strategic move that could pay dividends is convincing veteran guard CJ McCollum to embrace a bench role to help […]

Willie Green’s first big decision after being hired by the New Orleans Pelicans was a call to EVP David Griffin about Herb Jones. The first-time head coach was going to start the team’s second-round pick, a rarity in the NBA. It was a gamble that has paid off tremendously. Jones oozes a defensive prowess that […]

Offseason breaks lead to odd stats. There is one that is disheartening for both the New Orleans Pelicans and Nike’s Jordan Brand. Zion Williamson has blown out more Nike sneakers (1) in front of President Obama than appearances in NBA Playoffs games (0). The All-Star had a career-high in games played last season but came […]

New Orleans Pelicans franchise star Zion Williamson has been working all offseason to get back to NBA action as an injury-plagued 2023-24 season allowed him and his fans just 29 games during the campaign. He’s one of the most exciting and freakish talents in the league today and fans have been keeping their fingers cross […]

The New Orleans Pelicans are gearing up for another season under head coach Willie Green’s stewardship. Now going to his fourth year in charge, the Detroit Mercy alum is facing some new challenges, with some more welcomed than others. Fitting in Dejounte Murray around Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram is a good problem. The challenge […]

The New Orleans Pelicans have had themselves an eventful offseason, and yet here they are, with August on its way, still yet to address their pressing need at the center position after letting Jonas Valanciunas walk in free agency and sending Larry Nance Jr. away in the Dejounte Murray trade. But are the Pelicans simply […]

Executive Vice President David Griffin has made significant moves this offseason, including acquiring All-Star guard Dejounte Murray and signing veteran center Daniel Theis. New Orleans also nabbed promising Baylor big man Yves Missi and sharpshooting Kentucky guard Antonio Reeves in the 2024 NBA Draft. However, the revamped front office stuck with the homegrown core despite […]

The 2019 NBA Draft was highlighted by two of the biggest and most entertaining prospects in recent memory. Those two players (Zion Williamson and Ja Morant) have had interesting careers to this point, but there was also a lot of talent to be found elsewhere in the 2019 draft class. Of course, draft classes never […]

The NBA Draft and Summer League sessions are in the past. Some events (like Men’s Soccer) have already kicked off but the 2024 Paris Olympics do not officially open until July 26. Free agency has cooled off as much as the trade market. The downtime can lead to stir-craziness. Fortunately, fans can find an outlet […]

The New Orleans Pelicans had to replace nearly all of the team’s minutes at the center position from a season ago going into the initial NBA Free Agency frenzy. Jonas Valanciunas jumped ship in a sign-and-trade to the Washington Wizards. Dependable backups Larry Nance Jr. and Cody Zeller were sent to the Atlanta Hawks in […]

Professional sports is about more than just high-level athletic competition. Ego, status, money, and roles really matter when it comes to the fabric of building a team. The New Orleans Pelicans are dealing with a few of those issues now as the Brandon Ingram contract extension stare-down lingers on. The roster has been nitpicked apart […]

EVP David Griffin was not kidding about the New Orleans Pelicans operating with a sense of urgency this offseason. He reached a deal with the Atlanta Hawks for Dejounte Murray before most of the 2024 NBA Draft’s dust settled. The lack of a point guard issue is seemingly solved as far as the front office […]

David Griffin is not a stranger to the rigors of being in an NBA front office. Before he took over as the Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations for the New Orleans Pelicans in 2019, Griffin had spent nearly seven years with the Cleveland Cavaliers, struggling through four seasons without LeBron James, and then encountering […]

The New Orleans Pelicans are in a unique situation heading into the 2024-2025 season, and the roster changes Bryson Graham makes this offseason can open their contention window or slam it shut. Willie Green’s squad has Zion Williamson, who is a superstar when healthy, and Brandon Ingram, who is a star but not quite a […]

When a generational talent enters the league, they are usually one-of-one. No one is able to be compared to them due to just how freakishly athletic they are given their build. Zion Williamson was a prime example of this before getting drafted by the New Orleans Pelicans. There were not a lot of bulky guys […]

Adam Silver still has time to prepare the opening 2024 NBA Draft speech but the league’s teams are out of planning time for the NBA Free Agency frenzy. Dominoes are starting to fall with Pascal Siakam (Indiana Pacers) and Malik Monk (Sacramento Kings) having already agreed to deals with their former teams. The New Orleans […]

The New Orleans Pelicans are going to act with a sense of urgency this summer according to EVP David Griffin’s exit interview. While the front office is looking forward to reshaping the roster around Zion Williamson, some fans are looking backward in time to find the point guard of the future. The franchise wanted Chris […]

The Dallas Mavericks have much to be proud of, but the Boston Celtics put a bow on the 2023-23 NBA season by earning their 18th title banner. Now the entire league will become hyper-focused on the 2024 NBA Draft and the upcoming free agency frenzy. However, that’s not to suggest the recent NBA Finals tilt […]

The actual playing of games is all over for every NBA team except the Dallas Mavericks and Boston Celtics. Most of those organizations know what they will be working with as a core to start next season, though, especially those with NBA Finals aspirations. The New Orleans Pelicans are among those playoff contenders largely thanks […]

Every relationship whether personal or professional goes through ebbs and flows. Honest analysis and compromising when necessary are just two elements to those partnerships surviving the toughest times. Even when things are going well, one party might be more internally motivated or influenced by outside factors than the other. There’s always a give and take […]

The New Orleans Pelicans do not have the first pick in the 2024 NBA Draft but the front office is definitely on the clock. EVP David Griffin is under pressure to build a contender around Zion Williamson. By most accounts that roster revamp starts with finding a point guard and a big man to replace […]

The New Orleans Pelicans were seen as a team in a state of limbo entering the 2024 NBA Play-In Tournament. A handful of big wins have raised the stakes this offseason as the Pelicans look to improve upon their first round exit from the 2024 NBA Playoffs at the hands of the Oklahoma City Thunder. […]

For years, Zion Williamson has been criticized as a result of his fitness levels and overall health. Entering the 2023-24 season, he had played in just about 50 percent of the New Orleans Pelicans’ games since being drafted first overall in 2019. That is why Zion playing 70 games during the 2023-24 season is a […]

The NBA Playoffs are still the main attraction but the league’s silly season is heating up quicker than the summer temperatures. Now that the NBA Draft Lottery has set the selection order in stone, front offices around the league have a better understanding of what is available in any given swap. That does not mean […]

The New Orleans Pelicans concluded their 2023-2024 season with an ‘Irish goodbye’ in the first round of the playoffs, getting swept by Chet Holmgren, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Oklahoma City Thunder. Now the Pelicans must decide who to keep and who to get rid of as they point their sails toward further horizons for next […]

The New Orleans Pelicans managed to escape the Play-In Tournament this year, but they did so without Zion Williamson, who suffered a hamstring injury in their first Play-In game against the Los Angeles Lakers. And sure enough, Brandon Ingram and company were unable to get much going against the Oklahoma City Thunder without Williamson on […]

New Orleans Pelicans star Zion Williamson has received immense criticism regarding his weight throughout his NBA career, and Charles Barkley, who struggled with his weight during his own time in the league, said he hopes Williamson listens to his advice. On the latest episode of “Club Shay Shay” with Shannon Sharpe, Barkley, while discussing his […]

The New Orleans Pelicans made it back to the NBA Playoffs this year after getting knocked out from the Play-In Tournament last season. Unfortunately, the Pelicans matched up against the first-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder and got swept in the first round. Out of the past five seasons, New Orleans only made it to a couple […]

Willie Green did everything possible to push the New Orleans Pelicans in the NBA Playoffs but a lack of All-Star firepower once again doomed the franchise to an early postseason exit. A hobbled Brandon Ingram almost helped the underdogs steal Game 1 from the Oklahoma City Thunder but the eighth-seeded squad never stood a chance […]

The New Orleans Pelicans were swept by the Oklahoma City Thunder in the first round of the NBA Playoffs. They were defeated in Game 4 by a final score of 97-89. It was a difficult all-around series for New Orleans, as they were forced to play without Zion Williamson because of an injury. The Pelicans […]

The Oklahoma City Thunder pounced on the New Orleans Pelicans and finished them off on Saturday, seizing a commanding 3-0 lead in the ‘Big Easy’ that led to a post-game celebration with a hilarious moment. As the Thunder players began to team up for a post-game interview, things began to slip away from a TNT […]

Fans of the New Orleans Pelicans can be forgiven for getting their hopes up following an under-the-radar injury status update on Zion Williamson. The two-time NBA All-Star spoke a day before facing off against the Oklahoma City Thunder in the second game of their first-round NBA Playoffs series. Williamson’s words immediately stoked the fires of […]

It hasn’t been the best two-week stretch for the New Orleans Pelicans. They once were in position to finish the season with the fifth seed in the Western Conference, but a horrid string of games ended up having them finish with the eight-seed. New Orleans’ misery was compounded by the fact that Zion Williamson sustained […]

The New Orleans Pelicans can be forgiven for breathing a sigh of relief following an NBA Play-In Tournament victory over the Sacramento Kings. They were without an injured Zion Williamson and just one loss away from squandering a 49-win season. Falling short of the NBA Playoffs would have kicked off a long offseason of roster […]

The Los Angeles Lakers have claimed the 7-seed in the Western Conference, while the Philadelphia 76ers have claimed the 7-seed in the Eastern Conference. Just two NBA Play-In Tournament games remain to decide who the 8-seed in both conferences will be. On Friday night, the Chicago Bulls will hit the road to take on the […]

The New Orleans Pelicans are still alive in the playoffs, but if they are to advance from the Play-in Tournament phase to the postseason proper, they will have to take care of business this coming Friday at home versus the Sacramento Kings. If that doesn’t sound tough enough, the Pels will also have to do […]

All the New Orleans Pelicans had to do over the last three days was beat the Los Angeles Lakers once in two tries to establish themselves in the playoff field. A win on Sunday would’ve earned them the sixth seed.  Had they beaten the Lakers on Tuesday, they’d be matched up with the Denver Nuggets […]

New Orleans Pelicans star forward Zion Williamson left Tuesday night’s play-in game against the Los Angeles Lakers early due to what the team initially described as “left leg soreness.” After the game, it was revealed that Williamson was dealing with a hamstring injury and would undergo further tests. Now, facing elimination in the 8-seed play-in […]