It’s the time of year to sit out games. We have the tankers and relaxers.
The Knicks fit in the latter category after clinching the fifth seed, which prompted them to sit three regular starters Friday night — Jalen Brunson, Mitchell Robinson and RJ Barrett — while Julius Randle remained inactive because of a sprained ankle.
But their opponent in New Orleans, the Pelicans, had everything to play for. And with a familiar name on their DNP list.
Zion Williamson, once touted as the next generation’s NBA megastar, was ruled out for the play-in tournament by Pelicans vice president David Griffin, who still hasn’t provided anything concrete about a possible return date.
Even if the Pelicans, who entered Friday night as the eighth seed, advance to the playoffs, it sounds iffy, at best, for Williamson’s availability.
“Our best possible outcome would be if everything lined up perfectly, maybe you’re in a position to practice prior to a first-round series,” Griffin told reporters. “Or maybe practice during a first round. But it’s going to take more than one practice, right? It’s really hard. We may never get to that point either. If it’s not a situation where those things align and he feels the way he needs to feel, we’re not going to let him go to the next phase.”
Williamson hasn’t played since early January because of a hamstring strain, the latest setback in a career that still hasn’t gotten off the ground.
Over his first four seasons, the 22-year-old has played in just 112 of a possible 307 games. He missed all of last season with a foot injury. His career is teetering on collapse.
“I know it’s very disappointing for everyone. It’s disappointing for him, and it’s disappointing for his teammates,” Griffin said. “I think it’s just a matter of all of the objective metrics we can have on where he’s at and how he feels lining up. To this point, they haven’t. If they had, we certainly would have said, ‘OK, he’s cleared for 5-on-5.’ And they don’t. So it’s complicated, and yet it’s really not. When these things converge, he can advance to the next step. They haven’t converged for him to do that.”
On the rare occasion when he’s on the court, Williamson is an All-NBA caliber talent. He remains uniquely explosive for his size and strength, a better version of Blake Griffin on the Clippers. But the weight is probably contributing to the injuries.
The Knicks once tanked away a season in hopes of drafting Williamson, but they finished third in the lottery and picked Barrett. Nearly four years later, Williamson remains the greater talent but is lagging significantly in an important stat:
Total Games Played: 269 for Barrett, 112 for Williamson.
The circumstances beg the question of who will be the next great American star once LeBron James, Steph Curry and Kevin Durant fade out. Williamson used to be a prime candidate but it’s impossible to say that anymore.
