The NBA season is officially entering the end of its first-quarter mark of the season. Yet, there is one major component still missing from it. The component if you haven’t figured it out through the title? What exactly can stop Zion Williamson?
Zion Williamson
On October 21st, the 2019 #1 pick had surgery on his right knee in order to repair a torn meniscus. The post-surgery recovery has sidelined him for the past six weeks. The injury will likely continue to sideline him up until Dec.17 and possibly longer.
The injury derailed a masterful start that built much excitement during Zion’s four preseason games. The rookie averaged 23.3 points, 6.5 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 1.5 steals during those contests. He exploded for a 29-point outing while shooting 12 for 13 from the field against the Chicago Bulls.
The injury started numerous debates on the young star and what exactly caused the injury and could this lead to problems. Was it his massive size? Was it just a normal injury? Is this a sign of the future?
Through all the debates and questions, there is truly one answer that can stop the rookie from becoming a star.
And the answer is…
Himself.
It’s quite simple. Sports fans have NEVER seen a player quite like Zion Williamson. Zion is currently the second heaviest player in the NBA at around 285 pounds. This places him directly behind Dallas Mavericks player Boban Marjanovic who is around 290 pounds. The difference between the two is that Zion is only about 6’6 and Marjanovic is closer to 7’3. Naturally, the bigger a human being is, the more mass their body would carry. For Zion, this long-term could play a factor with him only being 6’6…
Next, Williamson has around a 45 inch vertical. As seen by the record for vertical he broke at Duke, Williamson is a freak-of-nature athletically. By now fans everywhere have seen Zion destroy a few rims through one of his many highlight videos.
To put this in perspective, Zion is only 12.5 pounds lighter than the average weight of 297.5 pounds for college offensive linemen. If his vertical holds up to be accurate, he would only be one inch shorter than another highly known leaper and 6’6 human, Michael Jordan.
This combination is unlike any other that we’ve seen across an NBA landscape. For Zion to play at a high level, it will come down to two main areas that he will have to address quickly.
Balancing Weight
It’s no secret for those of us that have visited New Orleans, Louisiana’s food is a key draw to the city. Zion would benefit early in his career from having a chef. Having a cook allows for a quality balance on his food. Many young players in the league have noted that their eating habits and dieting played a role in them going through the 82-game NBA grind.
And let’s face it when your young like so many of these players come into the league as you still crave good fast food and foods you may not notice could slow you down as an athlete. For Zion, this can’t be the case.
For the Pelicans, it is to find a balance for him between weight training and conditioning. As massive as Zion naturally already is, increasing workouts to increase his mass may not be the best idea. Finding that solid balance between both areas will be the Pelicans’ job to help keep Zion on the floor.
Quickly Developing an All-Around Game
If Zion can quickly develop more of a well-balanced game, more preferably on offense, this will benefit him quickly moving forward.
The Pelicans will likely play Zion more at the four spot due to his weight of 285 pounds. But with Zion being only 6’6, he would buy most NBA standards today be listed as a small forward. He could greatly benefit from developing a jump shot earlier than most of his other star NBA counterparts such as Ben Simmons and Giannis Antetokounmpo.
The ability to knock down a jump shot will force small and power forwards in the league to have to guard Williamson further out. He could then take advantage of size and speed mismatches making it much easier for him at the rim.
At minimum, free throws would be a great area to start as he shot 64% on six attempts per game while at Duke.
Even developing a go-to-move such as a hook shot in the post or a strong faceup game could give him a quick scoring option like many of the greats have used.
Zion is going to stand out in NBA. Many hope that for years to come, he’s the next great player to grace the sport. But unlike many others, he is extremely unique to the sport. If Zion can master the art of discipline and continue his incredible work ethic, then the NBA has gained another rising star for years to come.
