NBA Legend Sends Message to Zion Williamson About Weight Concerns
New Orleans Pelicans star Zion Williamson has faced a lot of criticism for his weight, and those discussions have continued this season amid his up and down start to the year.
There have been some incredible moments for Williamson this season, but there have also been some disappointing stretches that have been met with discussions about his level of conditioning. Speaking extensively on this during his 7PM in Brooklyn Podcast, a Wave Sports + Entertainment Original, NBA legend Carmelo Anthony shared a message for Williamson:
"I think from the beginning there was so much put on Zion, like thrown at him. You have to be the next - you are the logo, you are the next guy. We haven’t seen [anything] like this since ‘03. So because of that… this kid is [coming in at] 18 - this kid still wants to eat McDonald's, this kid still wants to eat Chick-fil-A, this kid still wants to drink iced tea, man he’s from South Carolina… this is what they do, they eat… The fans want him to be Zion Williamson, the greatest thing since Wilt Chamberlain… but that’s not who he wants to be yet. So now he’s dealing with the mental aspect of I just want to be 19, but it’s so much pressure… So you start battling that and now injuries come… so now it’s [that] he’s too heavy, he’s this, he’s that… He needs to be disciplined… You [are] not gonna have that longevity that we are talking about if you don’t have that discipline… my message to Zion is discipline."
Understanding what it's like to have huge expectations as a young player, having come into the league as a highly touted young star with the Denver Nuggets, Anthony sympathizes with Williamson, but wants to see him stay disciplined.
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