The NBA needs Zion Williamson to land in New York or Chicago
Duke basketball player Zion Williamson is a superstar in the making. He can do things on the basketball court that makes the best college basketball players look average. He is without a doubt ready to play in the NBA right now and it feels, at times, that college basketball is too easy for him.
Most times he looks absolutely unguardable and just playing on cruise control. He could easily average 30 points a game at Duke, but he would rather play team basketball. Still, Williamson was averaging 20.3 points and 9.4 rebounds a game for the No. 1 ranked Blue Devils before he suffered an eye injury against Florida State.
Hopefully everything will be fine with his eye, which likely will be the case since basketball players get poked in the eye all the time. For Duke, a healthy Williamson could win multiple National Player of the Year awards this year as a true freshman, but most importantly, a healthy Williamson could lead the Blue Devils to a national title.
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For the NBA, a healthy young and talented Williamson could mean over a billion dollars in ticket sales, merchandise and television deals. He could be the next great must watch basketball player like Michael Jordan and LeBron James, because his potential and hype is the biggest of any player since James.
The NBA Draft may not be rigged, but I guess it was a coincidence that the Cleveland Cavaliers received the No. 1 pick in the 2003 Draft that allowed them to draft the local hometown star James. It was also a coincidence that the Chicago Bulls just happened to get the No. 1 pick which allowed them to draft the hometown star Derrick Rose.
This year, the NBA, needs those lottery balls – coincidentally – to give either the Chicago Bulls or the New York Knicks the first pick in the 2019 NBA Draft. Currently, the Bulls and Knicks have two of the three worst records in the league. So Chicago or New York getting the No. 1 pick is a real possibility.
For the NBA, Williamson playing in one of the three biggest cities and market in America is a dream come true. Could you imagine Williamson playing in one of those cities with their crazy sports media, tourists, and popularity.
In Chicago, Williamson would quickly be compared to Jordan. He would face the pressure of following in Jordan’s footsteps and would have to win multiple championships to be considered the best in Chicago’s history.
In New York, Williamson would be the new King of the city. The crazy New York media would be all over him and the Knicks tickets likely would be the hottest ticket in the league with every home game full of A list celebrities.
Now I know fans of other cities will argue that Williamson can be a star in their city which I will not argue. A great basketball player can be great anywhere, but a great basketball player in New York or Chicago would be much bigger and better for the league since those are internationally known cities full of tourists and with a much larger reach; something advertisers and sponsors are looking for in an athlete.