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Thread: Zion Extension Thread

  1. #51
    Griff saying that a lot of what's been in the media is ''just words'' and ''we're not about what you say, but what you do. And what Zion Williamson did today was to express his commitment to this team and this city, and that's what he's about.'' Calls all the speculation ''noise''.

    ''We feel like the team we have assembled with Zion, Coach Green and his staff will be able to put together quite a run, leading towards sustained success for quite some time.''

    Trajan adds ''I think I can speak for our entire organisation and probably the entire city when I say that we're thrilled to have Z signed up for the foreseeable future. Not just what he does on the court, because everyone knows what kind of talent he is [...] but it's also about what he's doing in the community. Here in the YMCA, what he and his family have started here, impacting lives, impacting the youth, which I know is important to them and also to us as well.''
    Basketball.

  2. #52
    Willie Green wishes Zion and his family congratulations. Says ''this is a huge day, especially given what he's gone through in the last year. What a difference a year makes. I'm blessed to be sitting here with this young man who has a bright future and we're all excited, the city's excited, the community's excited, to add Zion and what he does to the programme. So I'm looking forward to finally getting to coach [Zion].''

  3. #53
    That was a little ackward, almost forgetting about Zion.

  4. #54
    Finally found out when he broke his foot.

  5. #55
    Zion gets introduced as ''the birthday boy''. He says ''want to thank my family, the YMCA, the city of New Orleans, all of you up here. Especially Mrs Benson. Thank y'all for believing in me, giving me a chance to showcase my abilities and hopefully bring the team multiple championships. Most of all thank y'all for really sticking with me that last year. As Coach Green said, my birthday last year is when I found out I broke my foot and I was out the whole year. It was a tough year. For the Pelicans to come give me this birthday gift, I'm not going to let them down. I'm not going to let the city down, or my family down, and most of all I'm not going to let myself down. So thank you.''

  6. #56
    Zion calls Griff ''the man with the plan''. Says Griff told him ''it's going to be hard for someone to top this birthday gift''. Says his emotions are still high and he's excited to get on the court and play.

    Zion calls Christian Clark ''the piano guy'' in an accusatory tone.

  7. #57
    Says being here ''means more to me than I can explain''. Thanks the YMCA again, for them allowing him to use the space and put on the camp. ''Those summer camps helped shape me into the man I am today, so thank you to the YMCA.''

    Asked where this birthday ranks for him, Zion says it's #1. Not surprised there, honestly.

    Zion asked about his personal journey going through the last year and getting back to this point.

    ''The last few months were a rollercoaster of emotions. I felt it the most for my family, because in the beginning of the season I told the world that if you wanted to now if I wanted to be here, just ask me, and instead of asking me they ran with narratives. So my family's out in public getting harassed being asked why I hate New Orleans, why I don't wanna be here, and that's not the case at all. My foot was broke so I can't play, so that sucks. Every time I check my phone it's something negative, that's tough. So it was a rollercoaster. But my family, the Pels, Mrs Benson, they were always there. Griff would call me into the office - too much ,if you ask me - him and Trajan would offer gems, to help me mentally, they would always offer help. Coach Green as well, he kept his distance but he would drop gems for me. So the people I needed to be there for me were there for me and they helped me get through the tough times.''

    Asked what he has to prove.

    ''I wanna prove that I'm a winner. Wanna win with coach, with my teammates, and the ultimate goal is to win a championship. That's what we're all striving for. We're hungry. Y'all saw this past year what the team did and I'm excited to add to that.

  8. #58
    Sounds like Griff is throwing a bit of cold water on the KD speculation.

  9. #59
    I actually feel like what he's saying is genuine

  10. #60
    No questions about specifics in Zion's contract yet.

  11. #61
    Sounds like no player option

    Yep, no player option.
    Last edited by Freyfamilyreuni; 07-06-2022 at 03:43 PM.

  12. #62
    he stay

  13. #63
    The Franchise DarkHornet's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Freyfamilyreuni View Post
    Sounds like no player option

    Yep, no player option.
    Boom!

  14. #64
    Griff says the ''from the moment I met CJ, he's been a great teammate. He's already put me on a few things for longevity. The Pelicans are always there, giving advice, offering solutions. I feel like I'm in a great situation right now.''

    Coach Green on how he sees Zion's fit.

    ''Well, Zion is a huge part of what we do, or what we wanna accomplish. It's not necessarily him fitting in, he can do that with any team in the league, it's about maximising the group that we have when we add him to it. Frankly I think it's going to be scary for the rest of the NBA. It's going to take work to get there: what groups play well together, how can we take advantage of mismatches, how can we put out guys on the floor to be successful, that's going to take work. But when it all comes together, that's going to be scary.''

    Griff on the roster and the contracts being guaranteed.

    ''We really like the group we have. We feel like this group has a chance to do something special.'' Mentions that with the draft picks that we own ''from other teams'' we can ''continue to try and put us over the hump''.

    Griff on his meetings with Zion over the last year. Scepticism? Strained relationship?

    ''Well, I think that Trajan was certainly a big part of that as well. What he was alluding to was us being there to offer support and solutions. None of those conversations felt strained, but I think at the same time - we said this from the beginning - we have to love each other enough to be honest. So there were certainly times we were saying things the other didn't want to hear but that doesn't mean it was strained it means we were being honest with each other.''

    Pelicans history not working out with Max players - how is this time different?

    ''I think the difference started with Brandon Ingram, when he signed the 5 year deal with no option. We weren't winning at the time so people didn't put emphasis on that. This is a 24 year old All Star who scores 30 in the playoffs - if that had happened now, people would talk about what an amazing coup it was that Brandon wanted to be here enough for 5 years no option. Zion wanted to make that same level of commitment. He wasn't looking for a way out, he's looking for a way to stay. To stay more involved with the community. I wasn't here for the situations in terms of how it got here, but it starts in am ore positive way when people are more vocal about their desire to be here. You're seeing that across the breadth of the roster. That's in large part due to Willie Green, and the buy-in. When you feel that level of buy-in as an athlete, it's different. They've found a way to build that. Other situations I can't speak to but I know what we have now, and what we've created is what he wants to be a part of and that's unique for the experience of a Pelicans fan. It's a fair question but it doesn't pertain to this group.''

    Confirmed, no 5th year option.

    Those things you might not wanna hear: what are they? Zion says he can't say, laughing.

    A shift in the city?

    Zion: ''The playoff run was special. We got eliminated in the first round but y'all was there, you felt that energy. It was real. You can't make that up. The young players, buying in. Adding CJ, BI leading us, you felt that energy. Griff said it, as a player why wouldn't I wanna be a part of that? [on him re-joining, what does he hope for?] Creating a winning tradition. To prove that we're a winning franchise.''

  15. #65
    Quote Originally Posted by Freyfamilyreuni View Post
    Sounds like Griff is throwing a bit of cold water on the KD speculation.
    A little bit? lmao

    He's drowning it.

  16. #66
    The Franchise DarkHornet's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Pelicanidae View Post
    A little bit? lmao

    He's drowning it.
    Good. And with Zion talking about BI leading the team, there's no reason to break this squad up right now. They believe in themselves. We believe in them. Let's see how far this can go!

  17. #67
    That was hysterical.

  18. #68
    Quote Originally Posted by DarkHornet View Post
    Boom!

  19. #69
    Zion

    ''I'm a competitor. When I'm on the court I'm not thinking about laying the ball in, to make my career last longer. I'm thinking about putting that person through the rim. So me dunking, that's going to always happen. That's going to stay happening. I don't know what people are talking about. C'mon man.''

    Green: ''there will be times Zion is bringing the ball up, making plays. Sometimes Brandon will be doing it. Sometimes CJ. Sometimes Herb, to be honest. So yes, there will be times where Zion is playing point guard, our offense is built that way.''

  20. #70
    To secure 5 years with no option is impressive on Griff's part

  21. #71
    Great presser. Loved everything. Yes it was typical PR stuff but some of it felt genuine and it was hitting all the correct notes. Perfectly run.

  22. #72
    No questions about the protections in the contract.
    It was good to hear that Zion specifically mentioned BI as the leader of the team.
    Zion does not want to stop dunking.

  23. #73
    Quote Originally Posted by Sovereign View Post
    To secure 5 years with no option is impressive on Griff's part
    This doesn't happen without Willie and CJ IMO

    Griff redemption tour is real

  24. #74
    The Franchise DarkHornet's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Pelicanidae View Post
    Great presser. Loved everything. Yes it was typical PR stuff but some of it felt genuine and it was hitting all the correct notes. Perfectly run.
    Exactly. You know they're always going to "say all the right things" in these kind of press conferences, so you take everything with a grain of salt. That being said, it came out about as well as you could have scripted, so I'm trilled with it

  25. #75
    Christian Clark aka "the piano guy" per Zion.

    Well deserved for that doofus.

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