Zion Williamson Trade Reportedly Seen as 'Very Unlikely' in Offseason amid NBA Rumors
The New Orleans Pelicans reportedly plan on keeping Zion Williamson as the face of the franchise heading into the 2025-26 campaign.
William Guillory of The Athletic reported Wednesday "it's very unlikely" the Pelicans will trade the forward before the start of the upcoming season. Guillory also noted it was not an accident the Duke product represented New Orleans during the NBA draft lottery, and there have been ongoing discussions between Williamson's camp and head of basketball operations Joe Dumars.
"All parties feel pretty good about where things stand with the Pelicans-Williamson marriage heading into next season," he wrote.
The Pelicans made Williamson their franchise cornerstone when they selected him with the No. 1 overall pick of the 2019 NBA draft.
There is no questioning his talent when he is healthy and on the floor, as he is a two-time All-Star who has averaged 24.7 points, 6.6 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 1.0 steals per game while shooting 58.9 percent from the field during his career.
However, the issue has been Williamson staying on the floor.
The 24-year-old appeared in 30 games during the 2024-25 season after playing 29 in 2022-23 and 24 as a rookie in 2019-20. He also missed the entire 2021-22 campaign.
New Orleans has not advanced past the first round of the playoffs during his career and could, theoretically, look at an opportunity to trade him as a chance to reset the organization with a number of draft picks and young players in return.
The idea of Williamson being healthy and leading the way on the floor is also an intriguing one, and it seems like Pelicans plan to approach the upcoming season with that as the plan.
