http:\/\/www.imagn.com\/setImages\/553525\/preview\/22281255<\/p>\n
Zion Williamson<\/a> is supposedly<\/a> in the best shape of his career. So can he solve the New Orleans Pelicans’ center problem<\/a>? The Pelicans’ current roster construction seems to indicate that that’s the plan. Small ball hasn’t dominated in the NBA since the breakup of the Golden State Warriors’ \u201cHamptons Five<\/a>\u201d. And a last gasp<\/a> effort by the 2020 Houston Rockets may have put a lot of other teams off. But if someone can bring it back, it might be these Pelicans. And in an ultra-volatile<\/a> Western conference, is it possible Mt. Zion could reach the mountaintop?<\/p>\n At this point, the New Orleans Pelicans are clearly going to enter the 2024-25 season with German veteran Daniel Theis<\/a> as the only established rotation-quality center on the roster. Theis just had a nice campaign at the Olympics, where Germany narrowly missed out on a medal<\/a>. But even in the Olympics, he was backed up by another known NBA quantity. Moritz Wagner<\/a> may not be many people’s favorite player, but he is certainly more than the token sibling of an NBA star<\/a>.<\/p>\n In New Orleans, Theis will be backed up primarily by rookie bigs<\/a>. But the Pelicans have an extra card up their sleeve. One that’s more playable, the better shape Zion is in. It’s a twist on the Point Zion<\/a> model they deployed heavily in Zion’s sophomore campaign under then head coach Stan Van Gundy<\/a>. That strategy returned this past season as well under current coach Willie Green<\/a>. But the twist is really more like Mike D’Antoni<\/a> and Daryl Morey<\/a>‘s microball<\/a> experiments in Houston. That was back when the Rockets’ only center was a mostly unused, 37-year-old Tyson Chandler<\/a>. Six-foot-five PJ Tucker<\/a> had to guard actual NBA centers. Not just in spots, but the whole game. It was him, six-foot-eight Jeff Green<\/a>, and six-foot-seen Robert Covington<\/a>. That was the Rockets’ center rotation.<\/p>\n Of course, the Pelicans won’t need to bring back full Point Zion now that they have an actual point guard in Dejounte Murray<\/a> on the team. So Zion wouldn’t need to play the roles of defensive stalwart Tucker and superstar James Harden<\/a>. But those micro-Rockets had another point guard as a key component. That’s the offensive role that you could expect Zion to emulate in New Orleans. A six-foot-six version of Russell Westbrook<\/a>.<\/p>\nCan An In-Shape Zion Make Small-Ball Cool Again?<\/h2>\n
The Pelicans’ Center Problem<\/h3>\n
How An In-Shape Zion Could Prove The Solution<\/h3>\n
A Career Year?<\/h3>\n