New Orleans Pelicans: How Stan Van Gundy can develop Zion Williamson

How Stan Van Gundy can unleash Zion Williamson’s game-breaking talents as a coach of the New Orleans Pelicans

Now let’s get back to Zion Williamson. From a pure talent perspective, it’s clear that he’s more talented than Odom, Howard, or Drummond ever were. In fact, he’s a bit of an amalgamation between Odom and Howard.

Think about he’s undersized height-wise for a traditional big and has a unique and under-utilized ability to pass the ball just like Lamar Odom. Then he’s also mean and physical. A threat in transition and on the glass just like a prime Dwight Howard. What make’s Williamson truly special is some of his scoring abilities.

Unlike those big men in the past that Van Gundy worked with who were bound to scoring near the basket, Zion Williamson comes with a solid three-point shot and developing post-game. For Stan Van Gundy coaching Zion Williamson this time around is equivalent to NFL teams switching from a traditional drop-back quarterback to a dual-threat one. It completely opens options in the playbook especially with other talented players on the roster.

With Williamson as his muse, Van Gundy can advance all the elements he used in the past. Just like with Lamar Odom in the past, Van Gundy can run a two-man game with Zion Williamson but now with more options as he the Pelicans have multiple ball-handlers and Williamson as a bigger threat to score.

Secondly, Van Gundy can at times empower Williamson in a role similar to Dwight Howard but this time in an inverse approach. Rather than having Williamson in the paint to score if perimeter players don’t get clean looks, Williamson can be the distributor from the paint creating looks for those players.

Essentially with Stan Van Gundy at the helm, the New Orleans Pelicans could turn Zion Williamson into the ultimate version of Draymond Green. A do-it-all big man who’s more of a scoring threat and involved in virtually every action of play. That’s what Zion Williamson could look like with Stan Van Gundy coaching the team, and that should put the entire NBA on notice.