2019 NBA Draft profile: Duke forward Zion Williamson

Strengths

One look at Zion Williamson will tell you almost everything you need to know about what his strengths are.

He’s built like a fire hydrant.

With a 40 inch vertical.

All jokes aside (and they’re not really even jokes), Zion Williamson has been the most dominant one-and-done college players this side of Carmelo Anthony.

Zion carries certain attributes that just can’t be taught. Size, strength, agility and length fall into this category. Along with those certain set of physical skills that will make any NBA scout salivate, he possesses certain intangibles that can’t go understated.

Armed with his athletic ability, Williamson plays with a high motor, crashing the backboard with authority and using his physique to impose his will inside the paint.

When asked to lead a fast break, Williamson fills the lane in transition like a guard and has quickness and the ability to change directions to make the best college defenders look like a deer in headlights.

Williamson has become a rating goldmine due to his above-the-rim capabilities, but Zion’s most underrated trait is his court vision in transition. Despite facing double- and triple-teams for most of his college career, Williamson was able to catch opposing teams off guard with his ability to dish to open teammates for layups or transition 3s.

Although not nearly as talked about as his Duke running mate R.J Barrett, Zion has the traits to become a defensive nightmare for opposing offenses. He relies on his athleticism and basketball IQ to make disrupt passing lanes and blow up offensive sets as an off-ball defender. If Zion continues to develop reading offenses, he can quickly become one of the premier help defenders in the NBA.