It’s time to stop the body shaming of Zion Williamson, and the loudest voice in a crowded room of commentators is none other than Stephen A. Smith. When responding to the question of which team is under the most pressure entering the second half of the season, Smith took shots at Williamson.
“Zion Williamson, it’s not about his game. It’s about how many burgers he’s eating,” Stephen A. Smith said on Get Up. “Whether he is going to be in shape or keep eating McDonald’s, that’s what he has to prove, that the chefs don’t love him any longer.”
Wow.
That last “chefs” blow was lower than a boxing referee’s comfort level.
No doubt, Williamson has admittedly had trouble with his weight. But he has also stated how he needs to adjust and that his youthful inexperience, remember, Williamson is only 23 years old, and substantial financial gains created an undisciplined lifestyle. That’s a start in taking accountability, and no one said the solution was microwaveable.
“There are times when I will say that sh*t [dieting] hard,” Williamson said candidly to Gilbert Arena on the Gil’s Arena podcast last July. “[You’re] 20, 22, you’ve got a lot of money; it feels like all the money in the world man, it is hard but, I’m at the point now here because of certain things, I’m putting all the wisdom around me and just go from there.”
Smith has been consistently disparaging Williamson. In December, Smith also aired Williamson on an episode of “First Take.”
“You got chefs in New Orleans who love him,” Smith said. “They’re looking for him. Every chef there wants to meet him because they know he’ll show up to their restaurant. The word out on Zion Williamson is that ‘he’ll eat the table.’ I’m quoting. ‘He’ll eat the table.’
“What in the hell is going on with Zion Williamson? If Zion Williamson is healthy, conditioned, not missing 63 percent of his games like he has thus far in his career, New Orleans got a chance, to be in a conference championship game. Without him, they’re going home in the first round. Have you no pride? Have you no discipline? Have you no focus? Get your stuff together, young man. Get your stuff together. You are too great to be walking around looking as rotund as you’re looking! Get it together!”
The Pelicans nation responded in force. In what can only be considered a not-so-veiled response by the New Orleans Pelicans, the team’s official account tweeted an image Smith’s Winston-Salem State University collegiate basketball career averages which were far from flattering.
You can almost hear the pettiness of the Pelicans social media manager in the shadows saying, “Take that, take that.”
In addition, New Orleans Pelicans analyst Antonio Daniels responded to Smith with the same energy many gave SAS for his comments about Colin Kaepernick, that his perspective is deeper than the game.
“Listen, man, I am all for objective, fair critiquing of individuals and, collectively, of teams,” he said on SiriusXM’s NBA Radio. “I felt what Stephen A. said this morning of Zion was completely inappropriate and lazy. If you have an issue, there’s a way to go about addressing that issue.
“[The Pelicans] have won eight of their last nine games, but then you wake up this morning and this right here is the topic? To me, it’s almost gotten to the point where it’s personal.”
Doesn’t Stephen A. Smith know that in “The Big Easy,” being a fan of food is a badge of honor? All cities want a championship but attacking Williamson’s love for food in a place where the celebrities are the chefs is not the best tactic.
In his fifth season in the NBA, Williamson’s injuries have saddled his career since he was the former No. 1 overall pick in the 2019 NBA draft. This season, Williamson is averaging 26 points, seven rebounds, and 4.6 assists per game, even though he has only appeared in 29 games this season. Still the
Each team in a standard season plays 82 games, and Zion has never played in more than 61 games in a season. Still, with a record of 34-22, the Pelicans are fifth in the Western Conference with a record of 34-23.
No one is saying that Zion Williamson shouldn’t do better, but the consistent body shaming narrative should be the concern of the coaches and team leadership. Smith only looks like a bully on a pulpit, taking shots at a developing young man who is evolving for better or worse before the eyes of the world.
