The 4 storylines to watch at New Orleans Pelicans media day
By Willie Lutz
What will Alvin Gentry do to accelerate Zion’s on-court impact?
The first season of Zion Williamson is almost upon us, Pelicans fans. Right out of the gate, fans are going to be looking forward to breakaway dunks, gravity-defying blocks, and freakish interior maneuverability from the rookie; he’ll probably deliver, but he’s also a first-year player, so he’ll have a little slack.
How Zion is utilized by Gentry will be incredibly interesting to monitor. We already know he’s likely to slide down and play some small-ball center, other than that he’s expected to be the starting power forward. Williamson is a little undersized for the position but has daunting strength and closing speed to mitigate that issue.
It’s likely that Zion will have a lot of opportunities to feast when the Pels employ the pick-and-roll with Holiday and Ball on the floor. Any chance Gentry can employ to get Williamson crashing towards the rim will get fans excited.
Gentry needs to find a way to really maximize Zion’s rookie season, which is probably going to mean trying different things to see how effectively the rookie can create mismatches. In the NBA, he could be a matchup nightmare for any defender; bigger defenders won’t be able to keep up with his interior attacking speed, while smaller defenders will be overwhelmed by his strictly physical disposition.
What Gentry can do to get this rookie going has a lot to do with his job security. Leading the team since 2015, moving Zion Williamson along on the fast track would do wonders for his long term security in New Orleans.
Next. Read about the players that have the most on the line for the 2019-2020 NBA Season. dark
Regardless, Zion is going to do some captivating things on the court this year. Even at Duke, such a unique talent only comes around about once a decade; even if he’s imperfect, his skill set is undeniable.