Getty The race for Zion Williamson will be determined at the NBA draft lottery.
Los Angeles Lakers All Star, LeBron James thinks the world of Duke University phenom, Zion Williamson.
In a recent episode of HBO’s “The Shop” LeBron James spoke reverently of Williamson.
Interview transcribed via LandonBuford.com:
“I’ve watched him a lot over the last year,” said James.
“Obviously I was with everybody, you know, him coming out of high school—I was like, OK, all this competition that he’s playing against, these little short-ass white kids he’s dunking over every single time.”
“Every possession, it seemed like he could make a difference on the outcome of the game.” – @KingJames on @ZionW32. #TheShopHBO: @uninterrupted
Heavily regarded as the No. 1 overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, the 6’7″ and 285 pound Williamson, 18, averaged 22.1 points and 8.9 rebounds per game this year and was the unanimous ACC player of the year.
“The one thing that I noticed with his one year at Duke [is] that his energy was infectious,” said LeBron James.
“Every possession it seemed like he could make a difference on the outcome of the game.”
For those keeping score at home: Williamson recorded a total of 81 points, 30 rebounds and seven steals to help lead the Blue Devils to their 21st ACC title in school history.
“I love my teammates and I made a commitment to them when I committed to Duke,” Williamson told ESPN.
Williamson was one of four finalists for the Naismith Trophy, an award which recognizes the most outstanding men’s college basketball player.
Back in the winter and during a nationally televised basketball game against the University of North Carolina Tar Heels, Williamson drove the basketball and *poof* his left foot literally busted out of his shoe.
Williamson went down clutching his right knee.
The injury was a Grade 1 knee sprain, and the team listed him as day-to-day.
Should college athletes get paid? Duke player Zion Williamson’s ripped sneaker re-ignited the debate.
A marquee player “is worth a heck of a lot more money than simply the cost of that education,” @opinion_joe says. t.co/HSl61pP64o
Some thought Williams should’ve sat out the rest of the season.
After the accident, debates began on everything from Nike, the shoe’s manufacturer to what insurance policies should be put in place issues and of course whether the likely NBA lottery pick from Duke University should risk his professional future by continuing to play for the Duke Blue Devils.
“I would never tell a kid what to do in that situation, it’s up to him,” CBS Sports’ Clark Kellogg told me.
“If you want to play and experience that in college, you should have every right to choose for your future. I hope he plays if he wants to play and in vice versa. I hope his decision and nobody else’s and I’ll live and be happy with it.”
Guess what? Williamson kept playing!
Zion Williamson wasn’t LeBron James only topic of conversation on “The Shop.”
James also weighed in on not being pleased about Magic Johnson stepping down from his post as President of Basketball Operations of the Los Angeles Lakers.
So this is how @KingJames & @ZO2_ found out about Magic stepping down 😲 #TheShopHBO 💈
“I found out from Randy [Mims],” said James.
“During my stretching session, my right hand [man] says to me: ‘Magic just stepped down.’ And I’m like: Man get the f*** out my face you’re bulls****ing. I go and check my phone, I look at it, the shit happened.”Personally for me, I came here to be apart of the Lakers organization, having a conversation with Magic. So it was just weird for him to just be like: ‘I’m outta here,’ and not even have no like: ‘Hey ‘Bron, kiss my ass, I’m gone.’ It wasn’t even that.”