NBA rumors: Zion Williamson sounds miserable
According to Will Guillory of The Athletic, there may be trouble brewing in New Orleans. Guillory reported that Zion said he is "trying his best to buy in right now."
Per Guillory:
In the New Orleans Pelicans' latest loss to the Mavericks, Zion had six turnovers. After the game, Willie Green said, "We have to be better. I don't know how may times I gotta get up here and say it, but the transition baskets really hurt us. They had 28 fast break points." Coach Green attributed the Pels' loss to turnovers and lack of quality shots.
The Pelicans have lost five straight games. To make matters worse, the Pels have given up 120+ points in four of those last five games. Keep in mind, Zion wasn't available for two of those contests. Williamson didn't play in the game against the Timberwolves on Nov. 8 due to personal reasons. He also missed the Pelicans' game on Nov. 2 against Detroit.
This season, Zion has averaged 21 points, four assists, and six rebounds a game. Some suggest that Zion's lack of enthusiasm is due to him not being the Pels' number one option. Others believe that Zion is still adjusting as he typically does at the start of the season. Whatever the reason, it is clear that he needs to find his groove soon if he wants to lead the Pelicans to success this season.
NBA rumors: Immanuel Quickley chasing 50/40/90
Immanuel Quickley is still productive for the New York Knicks despite limited minutes. According to Zach Braziller of the New York Post, Quickley has high expectations for himself as a shooter. Quickley said Saturday, "I want to try to get over 40 [percent] from 3, for sure," He then added, "Overall, I want to be over 50 [percent]."
Quickley currently shoots 48 percent from the field, which is a career-best. However, he has not had the same success when it comes to shooting from beyond the arc. This season, Quickley is shooting 36.7 percent from 3. Though he's not far from his 40 percent goal, it's a drop from the 37 percent he finished with last season.
Despite playing fewer minutes, Quickley still contributes to the Knicks' offense. The guy averages 15 points, four assists, and three rebounds in just 24.1 minutes, down from 28.9 last year. Quickley still seems confident he can reach the 50/40/90 club. He told the New York Post, "I'm going to try to get it," he said. "If you set a goal for yourself, you're going to try to get it. So I'm going to try to get it."
When asked about Quickley's minutes being down so far this season, coach Tom Thibodeau responded, "The one thing we ask everybody is to sacrifice," Thibodeau said. "You could make a case that Quick is a starter, Donte is a starter, Josh [Hart] is a starter. They're sacrificing that for the team." With a 5-4 record, the Knicks are third in the Atlantic Division, trailing only Boston and Philadelphia.
NBA rumors: Draymond Green assigns blame
Curry dropped 38 points, the Golden State Warriors lost their second straight game at home, and Draymond Green didn't sound happy talking about it afterward. The Warriors have yet to find a secondary scorer other than Steph Curry. In fact, nobody on the team besides Stephen Curry has scored more than 20 points in a game this season.
Anthony Slater of The Athletic asked Draymond about the Warriors' scoring struggles after the game.
"Yeah, we gotta step it up." Green responded. Draymond said they could point fingers at the coach or the refs, but that ultimately they have to take responsibility as players.
"At the end of the day, you played basketball, it's your job to figure it out and be better. And so that falls on all of us...and you gotta take on that challenge of being better and giving to the team what you need to give to the team."
Interestingly enough, the Warriors' highest plus-minuses came from rookies Trayce Jackson-Davis and Bradin Podziemski. (Both plus-6). In fact, besides Klay Thompson's 16 points, the vets struggled. Chris Paul only had two points. Andrew Wiggins finished with six. Green finished with nine points, seven assists, and nine rebounds. (Classic triple single) As a team, the Warriors shot 38.5 percent from the field and 27.9 percent from beyond the arc. Definitely not the Warriors' best night.
There's still time for the Warriors to redeem themselves, as they take on the Minnesota Timberwolves again this Tuesday, Nov. 14. A strong showing on Tuesday could be a great way to get back on the right track. The Dubs are now 1-3 at home and 6-5 on the year.
