On The Hoop Collective podcast, ESPN's Brian Windhorst recently said that New Orleans Pelicans superstar Zion Williamson "has no value right now," later clarifying that he has "relatively no value."
Zion is a former No. 1 overall pick and just entering his prime at 25. He averaged 24.6 points, 7.2 rebounds, 5.3 assists, and 1.2 steals while shooting an efficient 56.7% from the field last season for the Pelicans. On paper, he's a top ten asset in the league. But unfortunately, you find out that there's an asterisk at the bottom of that page that says 214. That's the total number of games Williamson has played throughout his five-year career, averaging 42.8 per year. He misses roughly half the games each season.
That said, this presents a golden buy-low opportunity for the Portland Trail Blazers.
Blazers should buy low on Zion Williamson
Joe Dumars is in as New Orleans' new decision maker and is already off to a horrible start. Dumars traded away an unprotected 2026 first-round pick to land Derik Queen, a move that is inevitably bound to backfire. What other bad moves does he have up his sleeve?!
The Blazers must try to take advantage of arguably the worst-run front office in the league. New Orleans needs to recoup future draft capital, and Portland has shown a willingness to include it, as evidenced in their deal for Deni Avdija.
Like Avdija, Williamson is another star who fits Portland's rebuilding timeline and is on a surprisingly team-friendly deal. One Eastern Conference executive reportedly told ESPN it's "one of the best contracts in the NBA."
Zion signed a massive five-year, $197 million extension in 2022, but the catch is that it's not fully guaranteed. He must meet the criteria for games played the prior season, with benchmarks at 41, 51, and 61, and weigh-ins with a combined weight and body fat percentage below 295.
Zion's unique contract and limited trade value provide Portland with much-needed insurance if this experiment doesn't pan out. There's a chance it doesn't, but that wouldn't significantly set the Blazers back in their rebuild. They'd still have financial flexibility and plenty of future assets remaining to pivot to find another solution.
In many ways, not doing anything is riskier. The Blazers' young core continues to develop, but they are going nowhere fast if they don't have that star to help guide it through the Western Conference.
There's a chance that Zion is that missing piece for Portland. And given the surprisingly low risk associated with trading for such an injury-prone player, it would be in the Blazers' best interest to find out one way or another.