A recent episode of the Bully Ball podcast saw the likes of Rachel Nichols, Rajon Rondo & Demarcus Cousins discuss Zion Williamson, who has had a slow start to the 2023-24 season. The three kickstarted the discussion by playing a clip of some recent advice that Shaquille O’Neal had given Williamson. Shaq claimed that the Pelicans youngster was in the same boat that he was when he first started playing in the NBA.
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Shaq’s review of Williamson’s efforts revealed that the Pelicans’ prodigy needs to change his approach. The Lakers legend claimed that Williamson was not running fast enough on the court, and certainly not rebounding the basketball enough. In addition, he did not have the ‘look’ that suggested he wanted to be the best in the league. Shaq further added that Williamson’s potential could easily enable him to emerge as the best player in the NBA.
Regardless, with Zion’s determination and work ethic being under the scanner, DeMarcus Cousins effectively agreed with O’Neal. He claimed that he himself was operating merely off of talent in the first few years of his NBA career.
“…The biggest thing, the leadership, within the locker room. And the reason I say that, to piggyback off of Shaquille O’Neal, and I was also a guy in that position. Coming in early I didn’t take care of my body the way I should have, I didn’t eat the way I was supposed to, and I dominated off of pure talent,” Cousins said.
He further suggested that even if Zion was not listening to the management, it was the Pelicans’ job to ensure that they get the most out of their investment. This means that in order for Zion to become his best version, the 23-year-old needed to put in work.
“So yeah, Zion is getting by with talent right now, but it’s time to take that extra jump, that extra step and actually start putting in the right things to become the superstar to lead this team to new heights,”
The 39-year-old prescribed the presence of a well-respected veteran on the team who would make sure that Zion is taking care of the ‘little things’ to take his game to the next level. Cousins claimed that he himself had to put in consistent work and do the things that are not apparent to fans on a daily basis, in order to succeed.
“This is all Zion, when are you going to take that jump? When are you going to hold yourself accountable?” he said, in what seemed like a plea directed at the player himself.
Zion Williamson has been criticized continuously in recent months
Williamson’s poor form and inability to return to game-shape has made him an easy target for the media. First Take analysts Stephen A. Smith and Shannon Sharpe only recently criticized him for his lack of fitness.
Sharpe claimed that Zion’s stomach and his behind were going in different directions, something which he said was not a good sign for a professional athlete. On the other hand, Smith talked about how Williamson had become a favorite for a range of restaurants around New Orleans, claiming that the chefs in the city love him. After all that, Zion was recently forced to respond.
He scored a season-high of 36 points in the win over the Minnesota Timberwolves and then claimed he was intent on paying no heed to criticism that was not constructive. Hence, while Williamson has had his struggles, he certainly has the talent, and appears determined to find his way back to his very best.
