Even though he's undeniably gifted, Zion Williamson has only played in 85 out of 226 possible regular season games since entering the NBA. Needless to say, that should worry the New Orleans Pelicans.
There have been multiple reports about Zion's alleged poor work ethic. JJ Redick called him a 'detached teammate,' and some stated that he even fell asleep during film sessions. Add those injury concerns to the mix, and things don't look so good for him.
That's why the latest reports state that the Pelicans aren't willing to sign him to a fully-guaranteed contract. Also, that's why Shaquille O'Neal believes he should sign a short-term contract and then leave.
NBA News: Shaq Says Zion Williamson Should Join The Lakers
"So if I was him, I say, 'Okay, no problem. I'll take it,'" Shaq said on his podcast. "$90 (million) for 3, which is still 30 million a year. And then after that, third year with the way I play, you're gonna get offers of 350 to 400, 500 million from other teams."
"And then you say, 'You know what, New Orleans? Remember that little thing you did back in the day? Now I'm going to the Lakers. Remember that little thing you did and you embarrassed me? And you didn't have this conversation with me first and you wanna put this on Legion Hoops dot com? Well, I'm leaving you right now for 500 million for somebody else'," Shaq added.
Zion Doesn't Have A Weight Problem, Says Shaq
Shaq also believes that there's nothing wrong with Zion's body. Even though he's suffered multiple setbacks in his recovery and endured countless injuries, Shaq doesn't think Zion is overweight.
“I don’t think he has a weight problem, he’s just big-boned. Listen, the man out there doing windmills. I’m out of shape and I’m leading the league in scoring," the Big Diesel added.
Williamson is talented and dominant, but he needs to be available. He's shown glimpses of greatness when healthy but that has rarely happened. So, how could you blame the franchise for having second thoughts?
