CJ McCollum has been making the media rounds lately, with regular appearances on ESPN’s “First Take” and “This Just In.” Recently he was asked about Zion Williamson.
Zion has been the subject of plenty of speculation, and quite frankly abuse, from national media and fans who have questioned everything from his work ethic to his commitment to his teammates and the franchise.
A lot of this is unfair, but Zion Williamson hasn’t done much to help himself, as he has been largely silent with the media and spent a good chunk of the season away from his team, which just added fuel to the speculation that he wasn’t fully committed to New Orleans.
On a recent segment of “This Just In” with Max Kellerman, McCollum tried to set the record straight on some of this stuff and stood up for his teammate, who he says has mostly gotten a bad rap.
CJ McCollum on Zion Williamson
McCollum had a lot of interesting things to say about Zion Williamson and you can watch the whole clip, but here are some of the highlights:
"“There’s this misconception of what he is like as a human being, he’s fun loving, he’s from the south… the cool part is that his teammates like him, you see the media, you see how he’s treated he doesn’t speak very often, so a lot of people speak for him behind the scenes, but one of the things he’s going to do going forward is be present, not just with the team but also the media, so you can see exactly what he is as a person…I’ve enjoyed my experiences with him, he works extremely hard.”"
Zion Williamson is often portrayed as this sulking, even anti-social guy because he isn’t the most animated or talkative off the floor.
I found it interesting that McCollum mentioned Zion being more present with his team and media in the future, which is important, as being the face of a franchise carries that added responsibility.
CJ is one of the most media savvy players in the NBA and the president of the Player’s Union, so he knows how to deal with the press and can be a great mentor to Zion Williamson in this area.
McCollum went on to discuss the rehab process and how grueling it can be, but said that Zion Williamson was excited to return to a situation where he could contribute to playoff basketball.
CJ McCollum hasn’t been on the Pelicans very long, but he has already taken a leadership role on the team on and off the court.