New Orleans Pelicans players, coaching staff, and fans had their hearts in their mouths when forward Zion Williamson exited the game against the Sacramento Kings midway through the second quarter after suffering a wrist injury. The young star tried to muscle his way through four Kings defenders before getting fouled and hitting the floor. However, Williamson landed awkwardly and broke his fall with his left hand, injuring his wrist. He grimaced immediately and was escorted to the locker room for further treatment.
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Hall of Famer Charles Barkley wasn’t impressed with Williamson’s falling technique. On TNT’s ‘Inside the NBA’, he claimed the correct technique was to “Fall on your a**!” and added that he practiced hitting the floor to avoid getting injured. Co-host Kenny Smith did not buy Barkley’s claim, and Shaquille O’Neal challenged the former Phoenix Suns star to showcase the correct technique. Barkley got off his seat without hesitation and smoothly hit the floor without using his hands to break his fall.
While Barkley was busy explaining why the technique he demonstrated was the safest and why athletes shouldn’t use their hands to break falls, O’Neal laughed uncontrollably before joining Smith in giving his co-host a rousing applause for his terrific tutorial. Barkley’s latest stunt was arguably his most athletic feat on the show in years and unsurprisingly, the clip went viral almost instantly.
As for ‘The Chuckster’s opinion, however, he was actually spot on. While watching the 61-year-old perform the technique was beyond comedian, he did demonstrate how an athlete can protect all their joints perfectly. In fact, there are many in the league that use it all the time today. So, while it would be easy to laugh off the whole bit, perhaps Zion should look to take a page or two out of Barkley’s book on this one.
Zion Williamson leads Pelicans to critical win
Zion Williamson’s obliviousness to Charles Barkley’s impeccable falling technique caused a painful injury and earned him an early trip to the locker room for treatment. However, it did not hinder his participation in the second half. He started the third quarter and was seemingly unbothered by his wrist ailment. Williamson finished the game with 31 points, six assists, and four rebounds and led the Pelicans to a 135-124 win over the Kings to stay sixth in the Western Conference standings, per NBA.com.
Williamson’s gutsy effort ensured that the Pelicans could fall no further than seventh in the Western Conference standings, regardless of the results in their last two regular-season games. The Kings, Golden State Warriors, and the Los Angeles Lakers are already locked in as play-in tournament participants. The Pelicans and Phoenix Suns hope to avoid being the fourth team in the dreaded play-in gauntlet.
The Pelicans still have work to do to secure their playoff berth. With two games left, they are one win ahead of the seventh-placed Suns, who own the tiebreaker between the two teams. If they both finish with identical records, Phoenix will finish ahead of New Orleans. A win over the Warriors on Friday, coupled with a Suns loss to the Kings will seal their playoff berth. However, if both teams win, they will go into the final day of the regular season with everything to play for.
The Pelicans need Williamson to guide them to two more wins to secure their playoff berth. They’ll hope that their star forward studies Barkley’s falling technique to avoid picking up any injuries in the next two games and beyond.
