The vice president of basketball operations for the New Orleans Pelicans said it was an easy decision to extend the contract of Zion Williamson.
If he signs a five-year, $181 million extension this summer, he will become the most valuable player in the league. After missing all of the 2021-22 season with a foot injury, and having played in just 85 games in his three-year career, his availability is a question.
When he's on the court, he'shistorically good, according to the man who spoke on the show.
The former Duke star was offered a max extension by the team. The kid is good when he plays.
The team needs to protect itself against the risk of injuries.
"As a small-market team that can't make mistakes in terms of injuries over time, you have to indemnify yourself in some way for that and that's fine," he said. It's easy to decide if or not this is a max player. If you're all the way in with us, this is what it looks like and we're all the way in with him.
The timetable for his return from injury was unclear to begin the season and he began rehabilitation away from the team in January. The team has always been on the same page with the man, and feels good about it.
When he talked about how much he buys into this, it was comforting. He was moved by Willie Green and the team during the playoffs. We feel confident that we can come to an agreement and that he would like to be here.
If an extension was offered to him, he would sign it, he said during the news conference.
He couldn't sign it quickly.
The 21-year-old has a career average of 25.7 points, 7 rebound and 3.2 assists while shooting just over 60% from the field.
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