Zion Williamson to Pelicans: New Orleans' Current Roster After 2019 NBA Draft
The New Orleans Pelicans selected Zion Williamson with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2019 NBA draft.
This represents the Pelicans' second-biggest move of the offseason. ESPN.com's Adrian Wojnarowski and Tim Bontemps reported New Orleans agreed to a trade with the Los Angeles Lakers that will send Anthony Davis to L.A. In return, the Pelicans will receive Lonzo Ball, Josh Hart, Brandon Ingram, the No. 4 overall pick in 2019, a first-round selection in 2021 and an unprotected first-rounder in 2024.
Wojnarowski reported the Pelicans traded the Nos. 4 and 57 picks, Solomon Hill and a future second-rounder to the Atlanta Hawks on Thursday, receiving the Nos. 8, 17 and 35 picks.
Check out B/R NBA draft expert Jonathan Wasserman's scouting profile on Williamson.
Brandon Ingram, SF: $6M (2020)
Christian Wood, PF: $1.6M (2020)
Dairis Bertans, SG: $0.8M (2020)
E'Twaun Moore, SG: $8.5M (2020)
Frank Jackson, PG: $1.3M (2020)
Jahlil Okafor, C: $1.6M (2020)
Josh Hart, SG: $1.7M (2021)
Jrue Holiday, PG: $26.4M (2022)
Kenrich Williams, SF: $1.1M (2020)
Lonzo Ball, PG: $7.5M (2021)
Zion Williamson, PF: $8.1M (2023)
Jaxson Hayes, C: $4.3M (2023)
Cheick Diallo, PF: RFA
Darius Miller, SF: UFA
Elfrid Payton, PG: UFA
Ian Clark, SG: UFA
Jahlil Okafor, C: Team
Julius Randle, PF: UFA
Stanley Johnson, SF: RFA
Trevon Bluiett, SG: RFA
Shams Charania of The Athletic reported Monday that New Orleans had Bradley Beal as a potential trade target after it agreed to the Davis deal. The fact that the Pelicans would want to acquire a two-time All-Star after losing a star speaks partially to how much the team expects Williamson to deliver right away.
As the 2018-19 season unfolded, Williamson distanced himself from the field as the top player available in this year's draft class.
Expectations were already high for the Spartanburg, South Carolina, native since he was the fifth-best recruit in the 2018 class, per 247Sports' composite rankings. He joined fellow blue-chip recruits RJ Barrett, Cam Reddish and Tre Jones in Durham.
Although the Blue Devils fell short of winning their sixth national championship—losing to Michigan State in the Elite Eight—the blame for their NCAA tournament exit didn't fall on Williamson's broad shoulders. He had 24 points and 14 rebounds in the loss, capping off a brilliant freshman campaign.
In 33 appearances, he averaged 22.6 points, 8.9 rebounds, 2.1 steals and 1.8 blocks. He also seemingly delivered multiple highlight-reel moments every game.
Williamson's prodigious dunks brought him viral fame when he was a high schooler. In retrospect, his recruit ranking undersold his true talent. However, it reflected what were fair questions about whether he had a versatile enough offensive game to be a high-volume scorer.
The 18-year-old put those concerns to bed during his only season at Duke.
There's no question physical superiority accounted for some of his success. With his 6'7", 285-pound frame, it was basically like watching LeBron James (6'8", 250 pounds) match up against college players.
But Williamson's post game went beyond sheer strength and force of will. He showed solid footwork and a good variety of moves for a true freshman. While he won't dominate to the same extent in his first year in the NBA, his inside scoring should translate.
He made a concerted effort to expand his shooting range as well. Through November and December, Williamson was 3-of-18 (16.7 percent) on three-pointers. Over the final three months of the year, he shot 21-of-53 (39.6 percent).
As much fun as Williamson was to watch on offense, he might be a better defender. His block on Virginia guard De'Andre Hunter in February showed both his incredible leaping ability and closing speed.
He is the most complete player the draft has seen in some time. Bleacher Report's Jonathan Wasserman looked at the advanced metrics in January and noted he stacked up well against basically every other No. 1 pick from the past 10 years.
For the Pelicans, winning the draft lottery made all the drama from the past season worth it. Williamson is the kind of cornerstone around whom a franchise can build its future.
Although Davis remained in New Orleans through the trade deadline following his trade request, his departure was inevitable. There was no going back once he made it clear he didn't envision staying with the team when he's eligible to opt out of his deal after the 2019-20 season.
As a result, the franchise's future looked bleak, even with the addition of David Griffin as the executive vice president of basketball operations. The Pelicans aren't a marquee free-agent destination, so they essentially had to hope of to land a future All-Star in the draft.
Williamson is that player, and New Orleans didn't have to go through the full-fledged tanking campaign to get him.
It would be one thing if Williamson arrived with the previous front office in charge. Dell Demps had years to build a title contender around Davis and failed to do so.
Griffin showed through the Davis trade—in addition to his work helping turn the Cleveland Cavaliers into an NBA champion—how much the team upgraded with respect to the architect of its roster.
Salary info via Spotrac.
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