Exit Survey: 3 offseason goals for the electrifying New Orleans Pelicans

3 goals for the New Orleans Pelicans this offseason: 1. Bring back Zion Williamson

We won’t know how good the Pelicans can be until Williamson is back playing with the group, as obvious as that may sound. It is easy to forget, but the guy was already an All-Star and doing things on the court that few others can do last season. He averaged 27.0 points and 7.2 rebounds a night.

Talks around his next contract and potential future employers have already heated up, and it was somewhat puzzling to hear Williamson himself say he had planned on playing in the series versus the Suns if it had gone on a game longer. The Pelicans were making life very tough for one of the title favorites; if Williamson was good to go, why did he decide to wait?

This could just be posturing on his part so that the Pelicans believe he is healthy and durable enough to be handed a max extension. After all, he has only appeared in 85 games for the franchise, and foot injuries to big men are not to be taken lightly. Even if he isn’t, they have no choice – you keep a guy like Williamson in New Orleans, no matter the cost.

Whatever you think about any potential weight issues, Zion has never had any problems getting up and attacking the rim. His pre-game routine even while out injured has become the stuff of online ridicule because of how good it looks.

All signs point towards Williamson being back for next season, unless some sort of sneaky, unexpected surgery announcement at media day is mentioned. One which, in case you’d forgotten, initially said he would be ready to go for the start of the regular season. He didn’t play in a single game.

Having Ingram and McCollum is a great place to start. Jones and Alvarado were amazing steals and will be of real use to the team as they continue to grow. Willie Green looks like one of the best young coaches in the league. But until we see Williamson next to all of this good stuff, the Pelicans will be nothing more than a cute, fun-to-watch group with no serious title ambitions.