“Comes Down to Zion Williamson”: Stephen A. Smith Names Most Important Factor for Pelicans’ Success

The New Orleans Pelicans had a decent outing last season. They finished eighth in the Western Conference with a 49-33 record. Their run could’ve been longer than the Play-In tournament if Zion Williamson didn’t get injured during the game against the Lakers. To make their team better prepared for the next season’s challenge, the Pelicans recently added Dejounte Murray to their roster. However, during an appearance on The OGs podcast, Stephen A. Smith said that it doesn’t matter who they add to their side as it will all boil down to Zion and his performance once they reach the playoffs.

The media veteran said that his comment isn’t to be taken as an insult to Murray, as he believes that the 2022 All-Star is a brilliant player. He also added that Murray wasn’t a right fit in Atlanta while he was playing alongside Trae Young. Stephen A. suggested that he will need to make some adjustments to his game to be a better player in New Orleans. Regardless of that, when it comes to the Pelicans, all eyes will be on Zion Williamson.

He said, “We all know when it comes to the Pelicans, it don’t matter who the hell you bring up, if it ain’t Zion Williamson, it don’t matter. It comes down to him.” Stephen A. then talked about Zion’s performance against the Los Angeles Lakers in the play-in tournament. He said that before he went down with an injury, the two-time All-Star was in “beast mode.”

As per the ESPN analyst, if the Pelicans want to improve their chances of doing something special in the next season, they will need the same Zion on the court who dropped 40 against the Lakers. Since we have already seen Zion play the game like that, all he needs to do for the next season is keep his health in check. According to Stephen A., once the Pelicans make their way into the playoffs next season, they will be able to cause some major upsets in the league.

Zion Williamson’s 40-point game against the Lakers

In the second game of the Play-In tournament, the league saw hints of what Zion Williamson was expected to be. In 36 minutes of playing time against LeBron James and Anthony Davis, Zion dropped 40 points with 11 rebounds and five assists. He also had a block and a steal to his name.

Unfortunately, he went down with a hamstring injury late in the 4th quarter, and the Pels ended up losing the game. Zion’s injury further caused them to get swept by the OKC Thunder in round one of the playoffs. Zion showed just how scary he can be for the opposition, and Stephen A. Smith’s claim on the Pelicans’ season is extremely accurate.