For the second time in a handful of years, the New Orleans Pelicans are dealing with questions about the long-term future of their former No. 1 overall pick. According to a new report by Shams Charania, William Guillory, and Joe Vardon of The Athletic that comes one day after the team ended Stan Van Gundy’s tenure as head coach, some in Zion Williamson’s camp would like it if he no longer played for the franchise.
While it is unclear if Williamson shares this sentiment, the report indicates that that general discontent exists in those close to the All-Star forward on the heels of a 31-41 campaign in which the team didn’t even make the play-in tournament.
For months, sources from all NBA corners have pointed to the Pelicans as a heap of dysfunction. There was a growing unease between Van Gundy and his players, and Van Gundy and the New Orleans front office, which came to a head Wednesday with the veteran coach and organization agreeing to part ways with three years left on his contract. Most of the attention, however, from numerous sources across the league, has centered on Williamson’s family members’ thinly veiled unhappiness with the Pelicans, and whether those feelings seeped into the player’s own views.
It’s not hard to see why the Pelicans, of all teams, would be ultra sensitive to rumblings of discord in the camp of a young star. The team is less than two years removed from trading Anthony Davis to the Los Angeles Lakers after years of questions regarding whether or not he could achieve his on-court goals with the team. Unfortunately, the report indicates a number of things — trading J.J. Redick, Van Gundy’s style of coaching, the organization’s perceived inability to “live up to what they felt should be the standard for a star like Williamson” — have caused the youngster and those around him to have some frustrations.
Williamson is under contract for the next three seasons, while the Pelicans will assuredly do everything in that time to make sure he and those around him are happy, namely by putting together a roster that can compete for a championship. But for now, some seeds are being planted that appear to indicate unease surrounding one of the brightest young stars in the league.