Zion Williamson has an insane level of hype behind him right now and it’s certainly deserved. The Duke freshman has absolutely dominated college basketball this season. Some even believe he’s already locked up his spot as the No. 1 pick in the 2019 NBA Draft. So why wouldn’t he just shut things down and wait for his professional career to start?
Scottie Pippen thinks that would be the right move and Tracy McGrady didn’t seem to disagree with him during “The Jump” on Tuesday. Both said they thought Williamson would be smart to just shut things down and wait for the draft.
Williamson has been unbelievable for Duke this season. He averaging 21.2 points, 9.4 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 2.0 steals and 1.9 blocks in 26.8 minutes per game. He’s also shooting a ridiculous 66.2 percent from the field. He ranks first nationally in PER with an insane mark of 41.6 — which would be a record — and he’s first in win shares per 40 minutes (.373), in which he leads by a ridiculous margin (second place is at .329).
He’s been the best player in college basketball this season, end of discussion. But should he shut things down?
I don’t think it would truly hurt his draft stock if Williamson walked away from Duke right now, but it certainly would cause some hurt feelings. Maybe it’s what would be best for him, but he made a commitment to the school and I don’t think there’s any chance he wouldn’t follow through on it.
I believe that we will eventually see players begin to bail out midway through their freshman years if they dominate. If there’s nothing left to prove at that level, then why stay? I just don’t think Williamson will be the first one through that door.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/54104443/1905606.0.jpg)
