Zion Williamson NOT expected to return for postseason
Zion Williamson NOT expected to return for postseason
After reports came out that Williamson was most likely not returning for the first round of the postseason, if New Orleans got out of the play-in, Zion has answered to the media.
Zion Williamson has confirmed that even if the Pelicans make it to the first round of the postseason, he probably won’t be playing. Also, he says he will return “when I feel like Zion again.”
Williamson even admits that he is feeling good, but does not want to return yet. This comes after the Pelicans cleared him to return.
“When I go to make certain moves, there is that hesitation,” said Williamson. “Sometimes there’s not and sometimes there is. And I understand the magnitude of these games coming up and I don’t want to be out there hesitating or doing something that may affect my team in a bad way.”
The Pelicans take on the Oklahoma City Thunder Wednesday to determine who will be facing the Timberwolves Friday.
According to ESPN’s Shams Charania, the Phoenix Suns are most definitely trading Kevin Durant and it has come down to three teams they are negotiating with currently.
The frontrunners to potentially land Durant are the Minnesota Timberwolves, Houston Rockets, and Miami Heat. All three of these teams have shown legit interest since the NBA trade deadline, or, for the Heat, since the time the Suns landed him.
Serious negotiations have manifested over the past 48 hours, which includes multiple offers. Charania reports a deal could be done in the coming days.
“There is some serious traction on conversations, on trade scenarios,” Charania said on the Pat McAfee Show. “They’ve had about six to eight teams reach out. There’s been interest. There’s been some offers. There’s been some negotiation.”
Many reports have said a trade could be done before June 25th’s NBA draft.
According to Pablo Torre, there could have been a world where Brian Windhorst left ESPN to work for the Oklahoma City Thunder in an intel role.
OKC wanted his connections and knowledge ten years ago; by getting Windhorst, they would of had a competitive advantage over teams in the NBA. He essentially has sources at every level of the game with a vast wealth of networking opportunities.
“One thing I can report is that a little over a decade ago, he actually explored our extremely plugged-in buddy, Brian Windhorst, away from ESPN, to work as an information guy for the Thunder,” Torre continued. “And the question of like, ‘Why would he do that?’ The reason that Sam Presti kicked the tires on hiring Brian Windhorst from ESPN is that information to Sam Presti is currency. It is an edge, a competitive advantage. And you don’t surrender that information.”
Since losing out on the Windhorst sweepstakes, they went in the direction of hiring hired Sebastian Pruti as a video analyst, as well as Royce Young from ESPN for their basketball operations content position.
According to multiple reports, Russell Westbrook has made the decision to decline his $3.4 million player option with the Denver Nuggets. He will officially be an unrestricted free agent this summer’s offseason.
The veteran guard signed a two-year, veteran minimum contract with the organization last season, which included this player option.
In 75 appearances, the 36-year-old averaged 13.3 points, 4.9 rebounds, 6.1 assists, and 1.4 steals per game.
Despite him saying he was undecided about his future, with him declining his player option and wanting to test free agency, this confirms to fans he does want to play his 18th season.