The stepfather of Zion Williamson, the presumed No. 1 pick in the NBA draft next month, shot down speculation that the Duke star is unhappy with the possibility of playing for the New Orleans Pelicans, who won the top pick in the draft lottery on Tuesday, and is toying with the idea of returning to school for another season.
Granted, it was a stunner when the Pelicans cashed in a 6% chance and leaped past six teams with better odds to claim the top pick. So stunning was it that speculation immediately turned to the possibility that Williamson might balk at beginning his NBA career in New Orleans. Although Williamson and his family have time to consider all the options, his stepfather seemed to certain he’d start his NBA career soon.
The idea that he would return for a second season with Mike Krzyzewski’s Blue Devils, “that is not (something) that we have even considered,” Lee Anderson, his stepfather, said on the Off the Bench radio show in Baton Rouge, La.
According to Anderson, Williamson and his family accept how the lottery turned out.
“One thing that Zion has always been taught is that you accept the things that you can’t change. You change the things that you can change,” Anderson said. “This is one of the things that he had nothing to do with. It’s the process of the NBA, and certainly we’re excited about the Crescent City down there in New Orleans.”
Williamson has yet to sign with an agent or a shoe company, which helped fuel the speculation. But his stepfather said that arises more from the desire to make the right choices, given that Williamson is only 18.
“We just feel that there’s no real rush to do this right now,” Anderson said. “You don’t get many opportunities in life to have the leverage and to have the opportunity to control your own narrative. Therefore, we feel like we are in position now to do that. We just want to make sure that when we do whatever it is that we do, it’s the right decision. We don’t want to look back and have regrets about it. We just want to make sure that we do it right.”
Anderson said that the family is close and doesn’t listen to all the outside noise, whether it’s about playing after injuring his knee last spring or returning to Duke or other matters.
“I spoke with who’s that coach — (Alvin) Gentry. We met with David Griffin (the Pelicans’ executive vice president of basketball operations) and had a great conversation and are excited at the prospect of coming down there and getting settled and looking for a place to stay and all these good things.”
That aligns with a report from The Athletic’s Shams Charania, who tweeted that Williamson had a positive meeting with the Pelicans before the lottery.
Footage hit the internet of Williamson’s instant reaction to the lottery results, and his wide-eyed, grinning reaction allowed for a variety of interpretations. Was that a smile on his face, or more of a grimace?
Returning to Duke would be a very bold move that would cost Williamson millions in the short term. As it was, he escaped a major scare during his one season with the Blue Devils, when a knee injury he suffered when he slipped on the court after his shoe exploded turned out to be much less severe than initially feared.
Some thought Williamson should have heeded the warning that injury represented and never again played for Duke, but he said he was eager to rejoin his teammates for an NCAA tournament run. Two of his closest teammates, fellow freshman stars RJ Barrett and Cam Reddish, are also set to go pro, so they wouldn’t be around if Williamson returned.
For that and other reasons, it appears highly unlikely that Williamson would actually go back to Duke. Yet as The New York Times’ Marc Stein noted on Wednesday, leaving open the option to do so could give him leverage with the Pelicans, who are already engaged in a staredown of sorts with disgruntled all-star Anthony Davis. They reportedly hope he might be convinced to rescind his trade demand because of the tantalizing prospect of playing alongside Williamson.