A new rumor from a well-known NBA analyst claims Zion Williamson is guaranteed to be moved by the NBA Draft on Thursday.
After falling short of reaching the NBA playoffs this year, the New Orleans Pelicans received little conversation over the last couple of months. However, that all changed last week when it was reported that the team had a very high grade for 2023 NBA Draft prospect Scoot Henderson, and was aggressively trying to find a way to move up and select him in the annual event.
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However, to be able to do so they would probably need to give up one of their stars to do so. Yet, in the days following that first report, it seemed that Brandon Ingram was off-limits in potential deals. It led many to assume that former first-overall pick Zion Williamson might finally be up for grabs.
Williamson being on the trade block isn’t surprising, because, despite his elite-level talent, his long injury history and growing divide with the organization over the last two years had made trade talk all the more possible. Yet, when push comes to shove would the New Orleans Pelicans actually trade him, and would teams like the Portland Trail Blazers or Charlotte Hornets want him considering his damaged reputation?
Zion Williamson stats (’22-’23): 29 games, 26.0 PPG, 7.0 RPG, 5.6 APG, 1.1 SPG
Well, on a Sunday edition of “The Bills Simmons Podcast,” the veteran NBA analyst dropped a very interesting nugget of information ahead of Thursday’s NBA Draft.
“The Zion thing is a real, real subplot. I had somebody tell me yesterday, that I trust, that he will not be on [the New Orleans Pelicans] on Thursday. I was like, ‘Really, I haven’t heard that.’ And he said, ‘You watch.'”
– Bill Simmons
While Simmons isn’t an NBA insider quite like notable names such as Adrian Wojnarowski or Brian Windhorst, he has been locked into the sport for years and has many friends in high places. His intel is certainly another fascinating grain of salt to take when it comes to the brewing Zion Williamson trade rumors.