According to Austin Brown, the co-head of basketball at CAA Sports, the New Orleans Pelicans star has agreed on a five-year, $193 million designated maximum rookies extension.
If he makes the All-NBA team, wins the Defensive Player of the Year and is named the NBA's Most Valuable Player next season, it will cause the total value of his contract to go up.
Since he stepped on an NBA floor, the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA draft, has proven to be a talent that will last a lifetime.
He averaged 22.4 points and shot 58.3% in his first year. In NBA history, only two rookies have averaged 20 points per game while shooting at least 45% from the field and the other was Shaquille O' Neal.
He was the first teenager to score 20 points in 10 games in a row, and he did it by his 15th game.
He averaged 27 points and 7.2 rebound per game during the 2020-21 season. His 27.0 points per game were the most in NBA history for a player who shot over 60 percent from the field.
During his sophomore season, he was selected to start the game as well as being an All-Star. He became the fourth youngest starter in the All-Star game.
He scored at least 30 points in 11 of the 20 games he played over the final 20 games of the season. As the only players in NBA history to score 20 or more points in 25 consecutive games, and shoot 50 percent or better from the field, Zion had a stretch of 25 games in a row.
At the end of the year, he became the 12th player in NBA history to score at least 2000 points in his first 80 games. He is the first player since Michael Jordan to do so.
As the Pelicans unleashed "Point Zion" under former coach Stan Van Gundy, Zion's assists per game average jumped from 2.1 to 3.8. Will Willie Green allow him to resume those duties?
In the Western Conference play-in tournament last season, Green's team won at home against the San Antonio Spurs and on the road against the Los Angeles Clippers to make the playoffs. The top-seeded Phoenix Suns defeated the New Orleans Pelicans in two games.
New Orleans got back into the playoffs after finishing the year with a 36-46 record. The team's late-season run was sparked by the trade ofCJ McCollum ahead of the NBA's trade deadline.
In his first three seasons in the NBA, Williamson has played just 85 games, including 24 in his first year in the league, because of various injuries, including a torn right knee cap and a broken right foot, which caused him to miss the entire second half of the season.
He has returned to on-court work without any restrictions after being cleared to return from a foot injury. The New Orleans Pelicans are looking to make a push in the Western Conference next season with the addition of three new players.
When he made his first public comments after breaking his foot, he was asked if he would stay in New Orleans. He said he wouldn't be able to sign it quickly.
At a local YMCA event last month, he said he would like to be in New Orleans. It's a fact. I felt like I stood up for what I said.
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