LeBron James’ Former Teammate Backs Pelicans Star; Wants League to Trust Him Like Joel Embiid

Joel Embiid has been the cornerstone of the Philadelphia 76ers franchise for several years. Despite not playing in his first two years due to a foot injury, Embiid has showcased his potential and pushed his game forward. With him as the leader, the franchise made their best playoff run since the 2001 NBA finals, by reaching the Eastern Conference semifinals.

While Embiid has been dominating the league, there is another young and rising star in the Western Conference with a story that is similar to Embiid. This is none other than Zion Williamson. Despite having a solid start to his career in the NBA, Zion is now injured and faces criticism due to his size, which makes him injury prone. But one former NBA star, who won a ring alongside LeBron James, still believes in Zion, and even compared him to Joel Embiid.

Richard Jefferson’s belief in Zion Williamson

As the trade deadline closes in, many teams have been actively changing their roster. Among these teams are the New Orleans Pelicans and the Portland Trail Blazers. As part of the trade, the Blazers sent their star, CJ McCollum, to the Pelicans, which allowed New Orleans to create a solid starting five, once their roster is fully healthy. This was when Richard Jefferson explained how Zion would fit in this starting five.

Jefferson started off by explaining that it would be difficult to understand how Zion would fit into the new lineup due to his injury and lack of games. However, he also mentioned that the young star must not be ruled out just because he is injured.

“Is he talented? Is he one of the best power forwards in the league when he plays? Yes. But he hasn’t played,” said Jefferson.

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Furthermore, he explained how the Pelicans should trust him by comparing his situation to Joel Embiid, when the latter was injured as well.

“Do you give him (Zion Williamson) a max contract? Do you do all that stuff? Well, the Philadelphia 76ers gave a very injured Joel Embiid a max contract, and it’s looking really really smart right now. So, I’m not just casting away Zion Williamson quite yet,” he explained.

Joel Embiid and Zion Williamson in their formative years

While Embiid sat out his first two seasons, Zion played in his first two seasons but sat out in his third. However, what is common between the two stars is that they both earned All-Star selections early in their careers. Embiid became an All-Star in the 2017-18 season, which was the second year of him actually playing on the floor. Moreover, Embiid would also help the 76ers make it to the playoffs that season as the team finished with a 52-30 regular season record.

Similarly, Zion Williamson would also earn his first All-Star selection in the 2020-21 season at the mere age of 20. It was clear that he could play with the same athleticism in the NBA that he showcased in high-school and college. However, despite him carrying his team, the Pelicans would not make it to the playoffs as they finished the season with a 31-41 record.

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But it isn’t over for Zion just yet. With age on his side, the future is still bright, especially since the Pelicans have now added CJ McCollum to their roster, who can be a solid leader and mentor for Zion. All Zion has to do is prove himself in the time to come, and who better to look at than Joel Embiid for inspiration since they both share a similar story.