When the New Orleans Pelicans drafted Zion Williamson, it was an early Mardi Gras for the city. Combining a player of Williamson’s caliber with ascending star Brandon Ingram, Lonzo Ball, and veteran Jrue Holiday was going to be what it took to catapult the Pelicans into the thick of the Western Conference playoff race. That was until Zion went down with an injury and missed a great portion of the first half of the season. While he sat out with injury, we watched Ja Morant star in Memphis. We watched Kendrick Nunn and Tyler Herro takeover in Miami. Rui Hachimura in Washington was making a strong case as well. All of this made “experts” begin to question Zion Williamson. “He’s too heavy”, “Out of shape”, “Can he last the wear and tear of the NBA?”, “Can he score from every level?” and so on and so forth. All of the Ja Morant stans within the Association began to voice how all along they would’ve taken Ja first. Well, fast forward and THE Zion Williamson hype train is back. With every performance, he is winning fans over once again. Every dunk, every block, every time he manhandles an established star, we fall in love with this kid more and more. Ja Morant is the current leader on the Rookie Ladder averaging 17.6 points and 6.8 assists all while leading the Memphis Grizzlies to a playoff spot if the season ended today. But, Zion is on his tail. Having missed such a huge chunk of the season, the question become, can he still win Rookie of the Year? If he can, what would it take? I think it’ll take 2 of 3 things to happen.
Make the Playoffs
Currently the Pelicans sit at 25-33 overall which is good for 10th in the West and 3 games out of the 8th spot currently held by the aforementioned Grizzlies. Zion made his debut on January 22 vs. the Spurs and since then the Pelicans have a record of 8-6 after just having lost to the West leading Lakers last night. This record of course will not blow anyone away, however it is a winning one and the Grizzlies who are clinging to the 8th seed have the toughest schedule to finish out the season. IF the Pelicans make the playoffs, Zion Williamson has a more than viable case for Rookie of the Year. But that is only one point of the argument. Clearly his presence is impactful if he can take a team who at one point lost 12 games in a row and was trending toward the bottom of the West to the playoffs . So what else would he have to do?
Continue Efficient Play
In 13 games, Zion Williamson has averaged 23.3 points per game, 7.1 rebounds, and 2.3 assists. For a rookie these stats are extremely admirable. That 23.3 points per game is good for 1st out of all rookies in front of none other than Ja Morant. His 7.1 rebounds? Also first amongst rookies. Granted, he has a much smaller sample size than some of these rookies, however that is besides the point at this time. Buckets are buckets. Boards are boards. What makes this so much more impressive to me is the efficiency. He is shooting 57% from the field, while shooting almost 42% from three. Zion is not a three point shooter by any stretch as he averages less than a 3 point attempt per game, but when he is taking them, he is making them for the most part so you cannot knock him there. His 23.3 ppg and 7.1 rpg are all coming while he plays 28.5 minutes a game. Mind you an NBA game is 48 minutes long. Stars like James Harden and Lebron James both average about 35 minutes per game or more. 5 rookies average over 30 minutes per game and Zion is not one of them. An uptick in minutes as the season progresses will only boost his stats even more. His player efficiency rating which tracks essentially all a player does into one statistical number is in the top 20 of the NBA. Some players efficiency ratings are inflated like Shamorie Ponds who has the highest rating in the NBA at this time but that is because he has only played in 4 games and that was for less than 2 minutes per game where he has scored 9 points in total and only missed 2 shots. Truthfully, nothing to worry about. But, players like Giannis, James Harden, and Luka Doncic all sit in the top 5 as well. Zion Williamson sits at 16th two spots behind the King, Lebron James. With a rating of 25.50 that puts him well ahead of his rookie counterparts and shows that when he is on the floor he is making the most of his minutes.
Show up Against the Stars
The easiest way to make your mark in the NBA is to show up in Primetime versus the best players in the league. Think Allen Iverson crossing Michael Jordan. We ALL know that game regardless of how old we were at the time. Who are the stars of the NBA? Lebron James, Kawhi Leonard, Giannis Antetokoumpo, James Harden, Stephen Curry. There are more but you get it. When you go against guys like this you have to play well. You have to leave a mark, an impression, make a statement of sorts. So far this year Zion has faced James Harden, Giannis, and just recently Lebron. 21 points and 10 rebounds against Harden’s Rockets, even though he lost. 20 points, 7 rebounds, and 5 assists against Giannis, but he lost. BUT, what did I say about making a statement? ESPN’s biggest story that night wasn’t him losing to the Bucks, but rather him manhandling one of the NBA’s stars by ripping the ball away (Click the random link floating in the middle of this article. You’ll see it for yourself). Zion’s most impressive showing though came against Lebron James and the Lakers. Yes, they lost. Honestly, the Pelicans may not win these big games just yet, but they do compete. It took a season high, 40 points from Lebron to fend off Zion’s Pelicans. Quick side note: Stephen A. Smith still isn’t impressed with you Mr. James. But in 33 minutes of action Zion scored 29 points, had 6 rebounds, and 3 assists. He shot 8-18 from the field on the game. Even more impressive was the 19 free throws he shot. It was a true showing off how powerful and unstoppable Zion can be when attacking the basket. Zion gets another shot at Lebron at the end of the week. He gets Luka Doncic shortly after that, and in two weeks he will see Kawhi Leonard and company for the first time. If he can make a statement in those games, he is in good shape.
Final Take
Zion Williamson has the talent and seems to be the heir apparent to the throne Lebron James currently holds. Missing almost the entire first half of the season makes it tough to argue for him to win the Rookie of the Year race. Many people thought he might as well sit out the entire season and try for a full season next year. But this guy loves the game and wanted to play. In just 13 short games he has left fans in awe, he has bought more life to a city that has plenty of life already outside of basketball (Mardi Gras is popping off as we speak), and he has positioned himself for stardom. I love Ja Morant and would not mind if he held onto his lead and wins the Rookie of the Year. The way the season is starting to shape up though, each game Zion is gaining. The NBA is a business. They love storylines, they love whatever will keep fans watching. Zion and Ja both will be the faces of the league in years to come, but Zion is THE GUY. If he continues on this path and takes his team to the playoffs, you can count on him to receive this year’s Rookie of the Year. As always, thanks for reading! Be on the lookout for more posts coming from here on out every Wednesday and Sunday. Love you all! – Quis
1st Quarter With Quis 