Recent rumors suggest that the NBA wants New Orleans Pelicans rookie Zion Williamson in the playoffs. As the NBA mulls over possible postseason scenarios, reports claim that all options would include Williamson and the Pelicans no matter what.
The Pelicans are currently 10th in the Western Conference. They are 3.5 games behind the no. 8 seed Memphis Grizzlies. With this, it's obvious that the league will incorporate some sort of play-in format that could give the teams outside of the top eight a shot at making the postseason. As the rumors suggest, involving Williamson in some capacity is one of their top priorities.
Certainly, this preferential treatment toward the Pelicans surely would not sit well with other players around the league. In fact, these reports are apparently creating paranoia around the league.
It's no secret that the league views Williamson as one of its top draws. However, this infatuation toward the 20-year old is getting a bit out of hand. And quite frankly, the NBA really needs to step on the brakes. Now, this isn't a knock to the Pelicans young star, but rather the overly massive attention the league is giving to him. In no way is any of this his fault either.
Zion Williamson entered the NBA as the most highly-anticipated rookie since LeBron James. His name popped on nearly every headline despite not playing a single game in the NBA. The league knew that they had a massive draw with the Duke star.
It took nearly four months to get there, but when he finally debuted in late January this year, he showed that he is the real deal. In 19 games, the 6-foot-6 tank was spectacular. He averaged 23.6 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 2.2 assists, while shooting 58.9 percent from the field in just under 30 minutes a night. Of course, he didn't hold back with his nightly highlight plays above the rim as well.
Also, it's hard to blame the NBA for wanting to bring in Zion's name on the league's biggest stage. The NBA needs to recover the revenue they lost because of the coronavirus pandemic. And Williamson is one of the NBA's biggest cash cows. In fact, his debut against the San Antonio Spurs saw a huge spike in ratings compared to the average game this season.
Moreover, hoops fans around the world are hungrier than ever for NBA action. Without fans attending in person, the league needs to raise its viewership to as high as it can get. Putting Williamson on the front screen would certainly draw more viewers.
Nonetheless, this isn't an excuse to gift him an outright opportunity to play in the postseason. The kid needs to earn his stripes first. He hasn't really proven anything yet. It's not as if the Pelicans were significantly better with him. They only went 10-9 with Williamson in the lineup.
Sure, Zion Williamson has had a promising start to his young career. But giving him this preferential treatment only to spike the ratings short changes the efforts of the other teams around the league. The Memphis Grizzlies have been the league's surprise team this season and making the playoffs would reward their year-long efforts.
The NBA should map out all the scenarios possible. If every single one happens to include the Pelicans, then it shouldn't be just because of Zion Williamson, but because they earned their spot to be there, despite their underwhelming season overall.
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