Getty Zion Williamson of the New Orleans Pelicans reacts to an officials call during a game on January 27, 2024
New Orleans Pelicans forward Zion Williamson is facing some backlash for declaring that he will participate in the 2025 Slam Dunk Contest only if he’s voted into the 2025 NBA All-Star Game.
Williamson made the comments following his team’s win over Toronto on March 5. During the game, Williamson showed off his unreal hops when he effortlessly finished a half-court alley-oop pass from Jose Alvarado. The highlight dunk got reporters to ask him if he’d ever consider showing off his athleticism on NBA All-Star weekend.
“I gotta do my part and make the All-Star Game,” Williamson responded. “If I’m in the All-Star Game, I’ll do the dunk contest. But if I’m not, I’m not doing it.”
Alvarado half court lob to Zion 💪
“If I’m in the All-Star game, I’ll do the dunk contest.” – Zion Williamson
Would you look forward to the Pelicans star participating? 👀
While some perceived Williamson’s comments as the 23-year-old challenging himself to get better and return to the All-Star game after missing this year’s festivities, NBA legends such as Shaquille O’Neal and Jamal Crawford weren’t impressed by his outlook.
Shaq to Zion: ‘Earn the Respect of Your Peers’
On the March 5 episode of “Inside the NBA” on TNT, Crawford felt Williamson’s comments came across as him “politicking” his way into the All-Star game.
“We call that politicking in the hood,” Crawford said of Williamson’s comments. “It’s like him saying, ‘Put me in the All-Star game and I’ll be your show.’ Zion is obviously trying to get back to the level that we all thought we would be at. People have been on him because we see the potential. He just needs to keep playing with force and remain consistent and he’ll be in the All-Star game.”
O’Neal was even more critical of Williamson, asking the former No. 1 overall pick to stop dealing with hypotheticals and let his game do to the talking.
“I don’t like when you say, ‘If I make the All-Star team,'” O’Neal said of Williamson. “You have to see it, Zion… ‘When I make the All-Star team, yes.’ All that ‘if’ talk just tells me you’re not fully confident in yourself, which is okay. He’s still a young player. But at some point, you have to say, ‘This is my league.’
“You don’t want anybody to put you in the All-Star game. You want to earn that and earn the respect of your peers. But it starts with visualization.”
Shaq not a fan of Zion saying he’ll participate in the slam dunk contest if he’s named an All-Star
Elsewhere, media personality Colin Cowherd poked fun at rumors of Williamson dealing with an eating disorder, which many feel has prevented the Duke prospect from living up to the hype in the NBA.
“So, he will dunk something besides Doughnuts? …I’d like to see him in the dunk contest,” Cowherd said on March 6. “And he’s not a good enough player to skip on it. LeBron [James] can skip it. He needs to do the dunk contest; his brand has been injured.”
“So he will dunk something besides Doughnuts… He’s not a good enough player to skip on it… His brand has been injured, he needs to do the dunk contest”
— Colin Cowherd on the prospect of Zion Williamson in the Dunk Contest
Did Zion Williamson Get Snubbed This Year?
Williamson didn’t make the NBA All-Star team in 2024 despite being the best player on a winning Pelicans squad.
Although Williamson is no longer mentioned in the same vein as Anthony Edwards, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Luka Doncic and other rising NBA superstars, he’s quietly having a good season. Despite averaging a career-low in points (22.0) and rebounds (5.5), he’s evolved into a more well-rounded player with a career-high 5.2 assists. In February, when the Pelicans went 8-4, Williamson averaged 6.5 assists and even earned the moniker of “Point Zion” for his ability to set up his teammates.
Most importantly, Williamson has been injury-free for the entirety of the season. Having played in 51 of the Pelcians’ 62 games as of March 7, Williamson is the healthiest he’s been since the 2020-21 season when he appeared in 61 games.
Pelicans (37-25) are presently the fifth seed in a crowded Western Conference where teams such as the Lakers, Warriors and Suns are in danger of missing the postseason. As such, Williamson deserves more credit for all but securing his team a playoff berth.
SportsCenter showed the Top 5 Dunks of Zion’s career because of his comments regarding the Dunk Contest