If you have watched the New Orleans Pelicans this season then you know that Zion Williamson gets fouled…a lot.
It happened again last night when his shot was “blocked” at the end of the game by Nikola Jokic. The replay showed that is was a pretty clear foul but Zion didn’t get the call, something that happens far too often.
Ummmm ... pic.twitter.com/yDPT7L4SNa
— Bally Sports New Orleans (@BallySportsNO) April 29, 2021
Zion is often punished for being the strongest guy on the floor, something we’ve seen with guys like LeBron James and Shaquille O’ Neal in the past.
What is a foul for one guy is not a foul against Zion Williamson, which is completely unfair, but also something he needs to speak up about.
New Orleans Pelicans: Time for Zion Williamson to speak up and get angry
Some have said that Zion Williamson gets plenty of calls, evidenced by the fact that he is fourth in the NBA In free-throw attempts per game, but if you actually watch the games you know that isn’t the case.
Zion routinely goes through four guys in the lane, gets hacked all over the place, but because he is strong enough to just go right through them, he rarely gets the call.
He has handled this better than fans, which is a credit to the 20-year-old who is wise beyond his years.
He's consistently been mature and 100% class when dealing with situations like tonight, even though he's still 20 https://t.co/4RszCoTruK
— Jim Eichenhofer (@Jim_Eichenhofer) April 29, 2021
Zion Williamson has not blown up and just goes about his business. I love that he is not a crybaby who constantly whines to the refs. Go watch a Lakers’ game sometime if you want to see players who complain after every call and non-call. It’s exhausting and not all that fun to watch.
But guys like Chris Paul and LeBron James started getting more calls when they started getting in the refs’ faces a bit and demanding answers as to why the whistle didn’t go their way.
The New Orleans Pelicans just quietly walked off the floor last night when it would have been the ideal time to let the refs have it after that non call that cost the Pels a chance to go to overtime and win the game.
I definitely don’t want Zion Williamson to turn into a constant complainer, but some well placed anger is long overdue, and if done correctly (and not to excess) can help him get some of those whistles in the future.