Absent all year to treat a foot which should have initially deprived him only of the start of the season, Zion Williamson has been the subject of many criticisms, and as many rumors about his desire to play with the Pelicans. On Wednesday, he officially initialed his max contract (5 years, 193 million dollars) with New Orleans, after “ months of emotional roller coaster ».
“At the start of the season, I said to everyone: ‘If you ever want to know if I want to be there, ask me directly.’ And instead of asking me, everyone preferred to build stories. And so when my family was out in public, people would pester them with questions like, ‘Why don’t you like New Orleans’ or ‘Why doesn’t Zion want to be here?’ when this is absolutely not the case. I couldn’t play because of my broken foot, it sucked. Every time I checked my phone I saw something negative. It was hard to bring out the positive in the situation. But my family, the Pels, Mrs. Benson… they were still there. Griff (David Griffin) made me come to his office… a little too often for my taste (smiles), but I was always offered help when it wasn’t compulsory. Same for Coach Green. »
With only 85 NBA games on the clock in 3 seasons, the winger will be keen to show everyone that he is still the player who made him an All-Star in 2021. Better still, he wants to lead his team, qualified in the playoffs without him this year (4-2 defeat in the 1st round against Phoenix), to victory.
“I want to prove that I am a winner. It’s that simple. I want to win with Coach Green, with my teammates. The ultimate goal is to win a title. We are hungry. You saw what the team did in the spring. Zion Williamson
via NOLA.com
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