Williamson also left high school as a McDonald's All-American, runner-up for Mr. Basketball USA, and USA Today All-USA first team honoree. Terrific shot from Michigan Athletics on Tuesday night. [27][28][29] On April 22, 2017, Williamson recorded 26 points and 7 rebounds for his AAU team SC Supreme in a loss to highly touted recruit Romeo Langford and Twenty Two Vision at an Adidas Gauntlet tournament. While it is true that Morant and Williamson were once teammates, it's not as though they played together on a shoe-company circuit and in huge events for years. [166] She named Williamson after the biblical location Mount Zion near Jerusalem, taking her grandmother's advice to name him "something extra special. He became the first rookie since Michael Jordan to post 16 20-point games within their first 20 contests while also logging the highest scoring average through his first 24 career NBA games since Jordan in 1983. [116], In his first eight games, Williamson scored at least 20 points in four consecutive games, the longest streak by any rookie of the season; he also tied the longest streak in the Pelicans franchise history, scoring at least 20 points in six of his eight games, and tying the record for the seventh-most among all rookies (fellow rookie Ja Morant had the most with 19) after a 125119 win over the Chicago Bulls on February 7. But this season? While Williamson's unusual high school rsum molded him in unexpected ways, it also made him a mystery in scouting circles. Skilled in Alcatel, MobileIron, LANDesk, System Deployment, and Sophos. Standing a little over 6-foot-3, Asa Waters isn't exactly tiny. section: | slug: court-report-the-real-story-of-ja-morant-zion-williamson-playing-on-the-same-aau-team | sport: collegebasketball | route: article_single.us | Zion Williamson introduced himself to the world when he was just a teenager. Lee Sartor: Coaching Zion Williamson in High School Lee Sartor began coaching club basketball at a young age, and has been coaching at Erskine College for four years now. [56] In December 2016, ESPN recruiting director Paul Biancardi touted Williamson as "probably the best player in terms of production" in his class. ", "Another Zion Williamson season ends in the toilet", "Why 5-star Zion Williamson would fit better at Clemson than Kentucky, Kansas, or Duke", "Zion Williamson breaks Duke vertical leap record", "We've never seen anyone like Zion Williamson but will his game work in the NBA? Coach Krzyzewski and Zion Williamson had similar experiences during their teenage basketball careers. The team is making 67.6 percent of its freebies, which ranks 256th in the sport and is flirting with the worst foul-shot percentage for Duke since 1994-95 -- the last time the Blue Devils didn't make the NCAA Tournament. ", Here's how Zion would look on some lottery teams (0:54), Sources: Ex-ND coach Brey to join Hawks staff, Miami PG Wong, ACC's POY, entering NBA draft, Highly touted guard Westry transfers to Syracuse, Guard Ashworth commits to transfer to Creighton, Louisville transfer Ellis joining Arkansas hoops, Pate signs with NBA's G League Ignite program, UConn guard Alleyne transfers to St. John's, Montana St. hires Point Loma's Logie as coach, UConn is No. I think Virginia will get a No. 2004-2023 CBS Interactive. Mike Kryzewski playing for his high school team Weber during his sophomore season in 1963. I imagine that lining up against Zion Williamson on a basketball court must be absolutely terrifying. "It was the first time I sat at a basketball game in four years. "I said, 'Zion you're going to be as good a writer as you are a basketball player if you follow through on this.'". [126], During the season, Williamson tied Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's record for the longest streak of at least 20-point games on 50-percent shooting within his first two seasons since the shot clock era in 195455. [73] Williamson returned in Duke's next game, a 9591 overtime loss to Syracuse, and erupted for 35 points, 10 rebounds, and 4 blocks. ", "How could Clemson lose 'a mile-and-a-half lead' for Zion Williamson? [71] On January 8, he posted 30 points, 10 rebounds, 5 assists, and 4 steals in an 8765 win over Wake Forest. Years from now, if the likely No. Before retiring last spring, the 79-year-old taught a daily creative writing class, a yearlong elective for kids interested in developing their craft. He was one of several basketball players to help the arena workers. It's been almost as long since Duke was this unreliable from 3-point range as well. "There are some things you can shape and do for a child," she says. "I think the game he really opened a lot of people's eyes, one kid went up for a layup and he tried to put it high off the glass and Zion looked like he went to the top of the square and pinned it. A bit shyly, Pell hands over Williamson's note, which was addressed to him. That said, being such a star makes one vulnerable to a broken relationship. #SCtop10 #GoJacks pic.twitter.com/MDwRFHFCrZ. [41] On February 17, he posted 37 points, 10 rebounds, and 5 steals, while scoring his 3,000th career point, versus Spartanburg Christian Academy at the SCISA Region I-2A tournament. The player's annual average salary is $7.3 million. Zion Williamson combines strength, athleticism and intelligence in an awesome package. [36] In the game, Williamson bruised his left foot, which sidelined him for over a month. Nor is he without athletic gifts. Sartor, now the coach at Erskine College, says Williamson wasn't unusually big when he first saw him play in sixth grade. [34] He debuted on November 15, 2017, erupting for 46 points and 15 rebounds in a 7062 loss to Christ School. He has been in a relationship with his high school sweetheart, Tiana White. "But there are also some things that are just innate. The writing, clear and artful, conveys a level of earnestness that echoes Pell's description of his former student's poetry. As Morant's star has risen, along with his position into the top five on NBA mock drafts, he's developed some fables around his time before Murray State. During practice, Zion Williamson took off from the free line for a dunk, threw it down with his right hand and was immediately mobbed by teammates, including his buddy R.J. Barrett, a Canadian . That's Charles Matthews after he let go of his winner but before it fell true. [142] On January 26, 2023, Williamson was selected for his second NBA All-Star appearance. [63][64][65] On November 6, in his first regular season game with Duke, Williamson scored 28 points on 11-of-13 shooting in 23 minutes in a 11884 win over Kentucky at the Champions Classic. He was the first player in school history to record at least 25 points, 10 rebounds, and 4 assists in an NCAA Tournament game. [8] As a freshman, Williamson averaged 24.4 points, 9.4 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 3.3 steals and 3.0 blocks, earning All-State and All-Region honors. The streak eventually grew to 25 consecutive games, surpassing Hall-of-Famers Wilt Chamberlain and Karl Malone[127][128] while tying Shaquille O'Neal's record of 25 consecutive such games,[129] with no other player having had a longer streak since the three-point era in 1980; his streak of 20-points games on 50-percent shooting and attempt to surpass O'Neal's record ended in a 139111 loss to the Brooklyn Nets on April 7. At age nine, Williamson began waking up every morning at 5a.m. to go train. Instead, he finds the next NBA player to come out of Murray State. [23] On January 15, 2017, he received nationwide publicity after rapper Drake wore his jersey in an Instagram post. "[163] Williamson has the ability to defend multiple positions well due to his speed and length, although his defensive effort has been questioned. Morant stayed with the program throughout his high school years . "I don't have it!". [69] Williamson was subsequently named both player and freshman of the week in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). Lob your question my way on Twitter. Williamson, then a 6-foot-6 junior, looked down in amazement at Bishop, then a 5-foot-6 eighth grader, who was clapping it up as he took his assignment to guard Williamson. A few minutes later, he answers it again. In middle school, Williamson was a point guard and lost only three games in two years. "He was playing in front of thousands, but if he had to walk out in front of 30 people he didn't like that," he says. Have a question, curiosity or complaint? The Knicks' acquisition of Zion Williamson's former college team-mate Cam Reddish has reignited speculation over a future move to New York; watch Clippers @ Knicks viewing party on Sunday from 6pm . Kane showed up on a Wednesday in Spartanburg for a ragtag AAU combine of sorts. [11] By his second year in high school, he stood 6ft 6in (1.98m). [166] Lateef was a football defensive lineman at Mayo High School in Darlington, South Carolina, who was a High School All-American in 1993 and had committed to NC State before transferring to Livingstone College. [131] By mid-October, the timeline for his expected return was extended until December. TheChosenONE 55K subscribers Subscribe 6.6K Share 385K views 3 years ago What Happened to Zion Williamson's Old Teammate. [124] On February 23, 2021, Williamson was selected into his first NBA All-Star Game. Photograph: Ethan Miller/Getty . [109] After the New Orleans Pelicans won the 2019 NBA draft lottery, Williamson's stepfather Lee Anderson said they were excited about him potentially playing in New Orleans and dismissed rumors that he would return to Duke for a second year, saying, "As far as returning to Duke, that's not something we've even considered. [30] In June, he appeared on the cover of basketball magazine Slam. [35] In his home opener on November 21, he recorded 29 points and 11 rebounds, leading the Griffins to a 7055 win over Hammond School. To find a spot for Williamson in the league, Givony said teams . There's a goodness about him that I think people want to celebrate.". 1, Top 25 And 1: Miami loses Wong to NBA Draft, NBA Mock Draft: Bama's Miller up to No. From 2015-18, Williamson became the most famous high school player since LeBron James en route to being the top attraction in college basketball. [120], Williamson finished his rookie season averaging 22.5 points on 58.3 percent shooting from the floor, 6.3 rebounds, and 2.1 assists per game. Reaching 3,000 is such a rarity, yet here we have two guys ready to do it in the same season and within less than two weeks of each other. [6], Williamson attended Spartanburg Day School, a small K12 private school in Spartanburg, South Carolina, where he played basketball for the Griffins. [94] He additionally made the ACC All-Defensive and All-Freshman teams. A small cluster of the rest, Morant among them, were directed to the back gym, mostly to play three-on-three. At first, Williamson tried his hand at short stories, but he wasn't entirely satisfied with the results. Both had commutes of about 45 minutes to Columbia. He opens a folder sitting on his lap and pulls out a sheet of paper. With 28 points on 13/20 shooting in a season-high 33 minutes of play, Williamson was just one game behind Carmelo Anthony for most consecutive 20-point games as a teenager at 8. [155] Lee Sartor, Williamson's high school coach, reported that basketball coach Roy Williams told Williamson "that he was probably one of the best high school players he's seen since Michael Jordan. Family Life. 260 10K views 2 years ago Most of you who watched Zion Williamson dominate the high school ranks probably remember his point guard running mate, Chandler Lindsey. (Mike Krzyzewski) is just the most legendary coach that ever coached college basketball. In late-September, team officials were hopeful that he would be ready to return by the start of the season. "He called me and said, 'This kid's going to be a pro.'". Five comps for Zion He was ranked as the number two basketball player in the high school class of 2018 by Scout.com. [147], Williamson is listed at 6ft 6in (1.98m) tall and weighs 284 pounds (129kg). During his only season at Duke, he averaged 22.6 points per game and 8.9 rebounds per game. Would trading Zion to build a Knicks superteam be a mistake? Being a star athlete, Zion Williamson is quite a in demand. As a freshman, Williamson played point guard, honing the playmaking skills that surprised national audiences this season. All Rights Reserved. Sartor agrees. Williamson got nothing but respect for his former rival The skinny and short eighth-grader who once guarded Zion Williamson is carving his own path in the game. Before becoming Duke's star. While Williamson and his family emphatically avoided the spotlight during his time at Duke, turning down most interview requests -- including one for this story -- there are lessons to be gleaned from examining his years at Spartanburg Day, a K-12 school with just 450 students (Williamson's graduating class had 45 kids). Name: Zion Williamson Who is: athlete, basketball player, basketball player Birth date: 6 july 2000 (22 y.o.) In high school, he drew national attention for his slam dunks. [80] He had his third 30-point game of the season on February 16, scoring 32 points in a 9478 victory over NC State. "But I think it was unbelievably important for him, as a person, to stay in that environment," he says, among students who treated him "like a regular human being." Even high school Zion. Zion threw down a few dunks during his. [54] Williamson was also offered a football scholarship by Eric Mateos, tight ends coach for LSU, but did not show interest. Further, the player earns $20 million from various brand endorsements. Zion Williamson's High School Career. At the beginning, Williamson thanks his teacher for pushing him to grow outside of basketball. All of those teams intrinsically have entertaining guys to watch. Williamson was born in Salisbury, North Carolina. [57], In a live ESPN telecast on January 20, 2018, Williamson committed to Duke. [75] On January 21, Williamson collected his third ACC Freshman of the Week accolades. [159] The Charlotte Observer remarked that he "could be the best high-school dunker in history. [5][7][162] Recruiting service 247Sports has praised his ball handling and passing skills for his size, commenting that they are "overshadowed by [his] athletic plays. Trade tracker and grades. : Zion Williamson 'probably the best damn tight end to ever live', "Zion Williamson takes over top spot in 247Sports' 2018 basketball player rankings", "Clemson has become the surprise favorite for 5-star basketball recruit Zion Williamson", "Zion Williamson pledge gives Duke top three players in ESPN 100", "Zion Williamson: 'I will be joining the brotherhood of Duke University', "Duke has the top three basketball recruits in the country. [143] However, due to his unavailability, Williamson was replaced by Anthony Edwards. 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