Zion Williamson, Pelicans Nearing Five-Year Extension

The Pelicans and power forward Zion Williamson are nearing agreement on a five-year, $231 million contract extension, per Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports.

Williamson was the No. 1 overall pick out of Duke in 2019. He has spent an inordinate amount of time on the injured list, but has been wildly productive when he’s played. Last season, he sat out all year with a foot injury. He has since been cleared to return.

On the bright side for Williamson, the Pelicans seem to be on the rise behind the likes of Brandon Ingram and CJ McCollum, acquired at the trade deadline. In fact, McCollum may have had his best stretch as a pro after the Pelicans landed him from the Trail Blazers in February.

Anyway, back to Williamson. The idea of him teaming with Ingram and McCollum is something that clearly excites the Pelicans, who qualified for the playoffs via the play-in tournament. They then lost in the first round to the Suns.

He averaged 27.0 points and 7.2 rebounds in 61 games in 2020-21, before suffering the foot injury playing basketball over the summer.