Why the Zion Williamson dilemma is bigger than a man-child who is larger than life
What Should Zion Do?
We might as well make bracelets saying “WSZD” at this point. The young man from Spartanburg Day School and now Duke indeed has become larger than life.
And now he’s the face of a controversy neither the NBA nor college basketball need. As one-and-done works its way back out of existence, this lame duck session has presented a new problem.
And this is bad news and an ominous foreshadowing of what’s likely to come.
Williamson, projected by pretty much everyone to be the No. 1 pick in the NBA Draft, got hurt and has been sitting out since he blew his sneaker out and sprained his knee. Luckily for him — and the rest of us — he wasn’t seriously hurt.
But his season has created a what-if scenario that is sure to play itself out until one-and-done comes to its long-awaited death. We’re probably going to be asking “What if?” quite a bit the next couple years as blue chip players are forced to be a part of the one-and-done system.
In a perfect world, no one would get hurt. All the players who are stuck playing a meaningless year of college basketball are now at risk, because someone will likely get hurt at some point. It’s an unfortunate fact.
I think some people forget about Joel Embiid and “The Process.” Seems like ancient history now, huh?
Some have argued that this a rare case and that Williamson — because of his once-in-a-generation talent — should sit. Others say he should play and enjoy the once-in-a-lifetime experience of participating in the NCAA tournament, and most indications are that he will.
But it’s his decision. I think whatever he decides is the right choice, and that’s because he’ll be doing what he wants and thinks is best for him.
If he walks away from a Duke team that very well could win an NCAA title, I’m fine with that. If he chooses to continue playing and risk blowing out a knee — and not just a shoe — down the road, I’m cool with that too.
The bottom line is this: It’s sad that the one-and-done rule is still in place. Yes, there is a light at the end of the tunnel now. Thank God.
But imagine if we had gone through this with the likes of LeBron James. You think people have over-hyped the Zion discussion? It could have been way worse.
The NBA’s rule that created the one-and-done scenario apparently in some ways was to make sure the college game didn’t suffer. Well, we’ll see how this plays out now. The game likely will suffer when situations like these come up.
If players decide to sit, it will hurt the game, period. It will interrupt the makeup and chemistry of teams along the way while shifting the balance of power.
The Zion Williamson situation is just another reason why the one-and-done has been a disaster. Let’s just hope it doesn’t cause any more destruction before it becomes part of basketball history.
