With news circulating that the New Orleans Pelicans are both interested in trading up in the 2023 NBA Draft to acquire the services of highly-coveted G League Ignite guard Scoot Henderson and are willing to move Zion Williamson to do so, the NBA world has been buzzing.
Everyone is firing off their takes on the matter. And one of those people is none other than former Pelican himself (and current media megastar) JJ Redick. Redick, a frequent participant on ESPN’s hit morning show “First Take,” had this to say about the Williamson situation:
"“If I’m the Pelicans, first of all, I’m not trading Brandon Ingram,” Redick said on First Take. “I want to be very clear. I am not trading Brandon Ingram. …He is more responsible than anyone for the Pelicans just being in the [play-in] game. His play down the stretch of the regular season was just unbelievable.”“As it pertains to [Williamson,] I think context on last season is important. Pelicans started out 18-8 in December. On January 1st, they were 23-13. A game out of first. Denver was in first. They were tied with Memphis for second. And then the very next day, [Williamson] gets hurt. They are not that far away [from title contention] with a healthy [Williamson.] He’s that good. …I think he’s a generational talent when he’s on the basketball court. … If he’s in shape, I’m not moving him.”"
Redick sees Williamson as a generational talent, and is simply not ready to trade him away for a player that might end up being a generational talent. For him, this Pelicans team is already good enough to compete in the West. They just need to stay healthy. Redick said the only way he would trade Williamson is “if , right now, in mid-June, that he’s not in shape.”
"He expanded, “he’s had five months since the initial injury. He’s had four months since the re-aggravation in early February. As of right now, coming off the hamstring injury, he should be strong, he should be fit, [and] he should be back on the court. And if you’re still not seeing that level of commitment, well yeah, you have to look at moving him. But if he’s in shape, I’m not moving him.”"
It is worth mentioning that we talked about this subject before all these rumors started swirling, and we landed on a similar conclusion to Redick in this post right here.