star new orleans swans zion williamson Austin Brown, co-chairman of the CAA Sports basketball team, agreed with ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
If Williamson manages to put together an All-NBA team and win Player of the Year or Player of the Year awards next season, that would trigger super-fast escalator clauses that could increase the total value of the deal from $193 million to $231 million.
Williamson, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, has proven himself a talent for generations since he stepped onto the NBA court.
During the junior season, he averaged 22.4 points and shot 58.3% overall. According to ESPN Stats & Information, Williamson is the second freshman in NBA history to average 20 points while shooting at least 55% from the field, joining Shaquille O’Neal (1992-93).
He was also the first teenager to score 20 points in 10 straight games, according to ESPN Stats & Information research, doing so in his 15th game.
During the 2020-21 season, he averaged 27 points and 7.2 rebounds on 61.1% shooting from the field. His 27.0 points per game was the most of any player in NBA history for someone who hit more than 60% from the field in an NBA season.
Williamson won the All-Star title during his sophomore season and was also a late pick to start the game. He became the fourth youngest All-Star player, joining Kobe Bryant, Lebron James y Magic Johnson.
During his final 20 games of the season, Williamson’s scoring increased to 29.6 points per game as he scored at least 30 points in 11 of those contests. Stretching to 25 straight games and scoring 20 or more points while shooting 50% or more out of the field, Williamson joined Shaquille O’Neal in 2001 as the only player to do so in NBA history.
By the end of the year, Williamson became the 12th player in NBA history to score at least 2,000 points in his first 80 games, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. He became the second player to do so in the last 40 seasons and the first since Michael Jordan.
Williamson also saw his passing average increase from 2.1 to 3.7 when he took on more managerial duties when the Pelicans released Point Zion under former coach Stan Van Gundy. Whether he will resume those duties under Willie Green remains to be seen.
Green led the Pelicans to the Western Conference playoff championship last season. They won at home against the San Antonio Spurs and on the road against the Los Angeles Clippers to be the No. 8 seed. The Pelicans took two games off the top seed Phoenix Suns before falling in six games.
New Orleans started last season 3-16 but finished 36-46 to return to the playoffs. The swans were changed by CJ McCollum before the NBA trade deadline last season, which helped launch the team late in the season.
Williamson, who turns 22 on July 6, has played just 85 games in his first three NBA seasons, including 24 during the 2019-20 youth season. A torn meniscus in his right knee delayed his first appearance. He missed the entire 2021-22 campaign with a broken right foot.
In May, Pelican Williamson was officially cleared to return from a foot injury that kept him out of action, and he returned to work on the pitch with no restrictions. with McCollum, Brandon Ingram Williamson is healthy as the Pelicans look to make a push in the Western Conference next season.
On April 29, when Williamson made his first public comments since breaking his foot, he was asked about a possible extension and whether he would extend with New Orleans. Of course he couldn’t sign it fast enough, he replied.
Last month, at a local YMCA event, Williamson reiterated her desire to be in New Orleans, saying, “I want to be here. It’s no secret. I feel like I held my ground when I spoke.”
