The New Orleans Pelicans star Zion Williamson is preparing for his sixth season in the NBA. After spending some time in China, where Williamson visited the Great Wall of ChinaZion was frank when asked who the craziest trash talkers are in the NBA are, as he quickly pointed out, the Phoenix Suns superstar Kevin Durant as one of the best trash-talkers in the league.
Noting how each star talks tough on the court, Zion also mentioned Minnesota Timberwolves All-Star Anthony Edwards when asked who the best trash-talkers in the game are.
“There are different styles of trash-talking. You have Ant [Anthony Edwards]. Ant is pretty direct about trash,” Williamson said. “You have KD [Kevin Durant]who’s gonna talk nonsense. But KD’s trash talk is more like, “Dude, I’m just a better basketball player,” and the way he goes about it makes it seem like there’s nothing you can do but respect him.
Although Williamson admits he never personally touched him, he did honor a third player in Dallas Mavericks star guard Kyrie Irving.
“From what I’ve seen, he never takes the initiative,” Williamson added. “But whenever someone talks down to him, he goes into overdrive; Kyrie [Irving].”
Zion Williamson’s Body Transformation Goes Viral
Durant, Edwards and Irving may have criticized Williamson on the court, but he’s also received his fair share of criticism from people who have ridiculed his physique throughout his career. Some of those people blame the two-time All-Star for not keeping himself in good shape, believing it contributed to his slow recovery from a foot injury that forced him to miss the entire 2021-22 campaign and then play just 29 games the following year.
Related NewsThe article continues below
However, after a relatively healthy season for the sixth-year star, Williamson appears to be in great shape after a recent photo of him went viral on Instagram. It’s safe to say that Zion looks like he’s ready for the coming season.
Williamson played in 70 games last year, the most he’s ever played in a single season. He averaged 22.9 points, 5.8 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 1.1 steals per game while shooting 57 percent for the Pelicans, whose season ended with a 4-0 first-round sweep of the Oklahoma City Thunder.
But with the addition of Dejounte Murray, Pelicans fans have something to look forward to heading into the 2024-25 campaign, as he will form a new star trio alongside Williamson and Brandon Ingram. Murray averaged 22.5 points on 45.9 percent shooting for the Atlanta Hawks last season, and Ingram complemented Williamson with 20.8 points on 49.2 percent shooting for New Orleans last year.
