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Zion compared to Lebron

weused2luvhim2 said:
Charles Barkley with a better vertical
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That's a heck of a statement, but I agree with it. Barkley was so inexplicable in college that nobody questioned his often stated height of 6'8". We couldn't fathom someone 6'4" doing what he did against 7' footers.
 
Cal-4-Three said:
I keep seeing people comparing Zion to Lebron. I actually think he is more in the mold of Julius Randle at the next level. Yes he is more athletic than Julius, but I think he will be more of a Julius type than lebron type and that has nothing to do with where he went to school. Thoughts?
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Have not heard this comparison
 
I think they are very similar in my opinion ,both 6-8 260lbs or so ,both built and blessed with a tremendous body and athletic ability ,both have 40+ in vertical leap! Lebron clearly a better shooter however at zion age shooting percentage from 12to 20 feet close ...Zion works on his shot and takes care of his body ,could have a very comparable career in the NBA,just one mans thought!
 
Way before Zion picked Duke I thought he may be a flash in the pan. I figured once he played against some 21-22 year old guys with size and strength we’d see he may have been overrated. Man, I was bad wrong. Kid is the real deal. He has grown man strength, explosiveness, handle, court vision, & shot blocking ability. I wouldn’t compare him to anyone. He’s himself.

The thing that makes him more impressive is his ability the jump that high with the weight of Bilas & J-Will attached to his nads.
 
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stoneycat_20 said:
No way id pass RJ Barrett for Zion...Zion you can see loves to eat..He may eat himself out of the league in 5 years
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This^^
Zion has the look of the great athlete at 20 and too fat to compete at 25. We’ve seen these guys before. Yet, the Duke fan base, dumb asses as they are, want to compare him to the greatest player in the NBA. Has there even been a modestly great player come out of that slime hole in Durham since Grant Hill?
 
Duke Blu said:
I could be wrong and maybe I need to go back and look but I don’t recall Randle having the consistent ability to take his man off the dribble away from the basket. When Zion has the ball on the perimeter, it appears most have trouble keeping him from driving. Zion has pretty good handles for a man his size. I’m sure if I’m wrong I will be checked here but I don’t recall that as being a major part of Randles’ game. Zion also grabs a rebound and consistently can take it costs to coast and passes pretty well.
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I mean, think about this logically.

If Randle were a 6'8 offense-first big man with a good-but-not-great wingspan and good-but-not great athleticism (which is all true), and he had little in the way of driving game, handles, or passing, how in the world would he have been highly projected as an NBA draft prospect? Why would he have been one of the "big three" prospects in that class with Wiggins and Parker?

Use your noggin.

The version of Randle you described hasn't been drafted top 10 in decades.

If anything, Randle was more skilled than Zion at this stage (not by much - I'm not gonna withhold Zion his due because of his hype or athleticism). Overall, he wasn't nearly as effective, because, well.. he somehow had a foot less of vertical to work with at 25 lbs lighter.
 
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KeepingItReal74 said:
I was going to say that. Both at 6’8 and both playing basically the same position.
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Zion wishes he was 6'8. I'm not so sure how fast he is either. He's so powerful that his avg speed is hard to handle.
To mention him in the same breathe as LBJ is ridiculous on work ethic alone. He should weigh 30 lbs less than he does and James is ripped out of his mind. You sure haven't ever seen James with extra fat on him.
 
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As someone mention randle is the best comparison. Just because Zion is built like a brickshit house, doesn’t mean he will walk in Cleveland and put up the same numbers as Lebron. Zion is very good, but it will take time and he will contribute. Teams will take more charges on him and force him to attempt jump shots. He will be very good but not an immediate impact player, except when they play good games
 
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Hoopcatjc said:
This^^
Zion has the look of the great athlete at 20 and too fat to compete at 25. We’ve seen these guys before. Yet, the Duke fan base, dumb asses as they are, want to compare him to the greatest player in the NBA. Has there even been a modestly great player come out of that slime hole in Durham since Grant Hill?
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I’m sorry but this is kind of absurd. I loathe duke as much as anyone but the whole “he’s fat” mantra is ridiculous
 
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BlueDevilWildcat said:
Jealously and idiocy, with a dash of illiteracy. This thread combines all three. Well done.
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Actually many in the thread have agreed he’s insanely talented and will be a star . He’s not Lebron though. Nobody is.

Of course we’re not all gonna suck on his nuts. This is a UK board after all (but you know that because 95% of your posts on rivals is via this board as opposed to your own)

You’re just being a contrary dumbass (yet again)

I feel as if it’s difficult for you to not visit our board and seek approval

Here you have a duke team, favored to win it all with 3 top draft pics (2 of which will be all stars as early as next year in the NBA) yet you STILL seek UK fans approval and validation.
 
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FrankUnderwood said:
I’m sorry but this is kind of absurd. I loathe duke as much as anyone but the whole “he’s fat” mantra is ridiculous
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No one is fat at 19. Most unusually tall people are still growing at that age with an incredible daily calorie demand. Zion has the look of a player that could have weight issues in a few years. The NBA has several examples of fit players that ballooned in the league:
Boris Diaw, Zach Randolph, Sean May, Greg Ostertag, Glen Davis, Shaun Kemp, Oliver Miller.
 
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Shaun Kemp may be a better comparison than LBJ.

Zion is a video game player right now at Duke. His athleticism will allow him to have some level of success at the pro level, assuming he doesn't get hurt. But the G-League is filled with athletes. He'll have to develop a better jump shot to be a star as he won't be able to simply bully guys in the pros or just out-athlete them. He also won't have the Coach-K/Cameron effect with the officials. You can deny it, but it helps keep him on the floor while wearing that Duke uniform.

Comparing him to LBJ is just silly. Two completely different players. LBJ is far more a PG than a PF.
 
Zion Williamson is showing up as the probable #1 pick in the NBA draft. There is no way I’d take him ahead of Barrett.
I think teams are buying into the Zion effect and his 2 million Instagram followers.
 
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FrankUnderwood said:
I’m sorry but this is kind of absurd. I loathe duke as much as anyone but the whole “he’s fat” mantra is ridiculous
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Except its not. If he were in the NBA today he would be the 2nd heaviest player. Watch him play in a up and down game, he is holding his knees before the first timeout. Truth is he is going to have to really slim down if he wants to succeed at the next level. He has the talent, but we will see if he has the drive/work ethic to make it work for him.
 
Hoopcatjc said:
Zion Williamson is showing up as the probable #1 pick in the NBA draft. There is no way I’d take him ahead of Barrett.
I think teams are buying into the Zion effect and his 2 million Instagram followers.
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No.

What they're looking at is this:

Barrett- 30.9% from 3, Williamson 26.5%
Barrett- 68% on FT's, Williamson 68.2%
Barrett 45.9% overall, Williamson 65.9%

You have 2 players, one of whom is much bigger, much stronger, and a much better athlete. Neither is a great shooter right now, and there's really not a lot to indicate that Barrett has a better chance to develop as a shooter. He might, but Williamson has just as much room to develop that part of his game.

If you take Williamson, you're taking a guy you absolutely know will be able to rebound and score around the rim, regardless of what happens with the shooting. If you take Barrett, you're taking a player who absolutely will have to become a better shooter to ever be All-Star caliber.
 
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BlueDevilWildcat said:
Those stats are college only. Here are Zion's, you can find Randles by going back a few years: https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/players/zion-williamson-1.html

It's not just the stats, though, Randle was much more limited offensively than Zion is. Not sure how anyone who has seen both guys play can think otherwise.
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The basic difference that I see is that Zion gets away with everything and Randle did not. If Randle had plowed toward the basket like Zion does, he wouldn't have played 10 minutes a game. Plus, Zion is a worse shooter from beyond the arc. 26% is not going to work in the NBA, especially when you move him out another foot. He is a good player, and Randle is a much fairer comparison than LeBron. LeBron would not be nearly the player he is if he shot 26% from 3, and that is giving Zion the benefit of the doubt because that extra foot will lower his %.
 
Cal-4-Three said:
Except its not. If he were in the NBA today he would be the 2nd heaviest player. Watch him play in a up and down game, he is holding his knees before the first timeout. Truth is he is going to have to really slim down if he wants to succeed at the next level. He has the talent, but we will see if he has the drive/work ethic to make it work for him.
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I haven’t seen him grabbing his knees at the first timeout but if he was that’s more of a conditioning issue than weight. You can be big and still be well conditioned. I don’t see him getting below like 265. Also he’ll get a lot more rest during games in the NBA.

If he does have a conditioning problem he’s been extremely efficient and effective with it.
 
Jkwo said:
I mean, think about this logically.

If Randle were a 6'8 offense-first big man with a good-but-not-great wingspan and good-but-not great athleticism (which is all true), and he had little in the way of driving game, handles, or passing, how in the world would he have been highly projected as an NBA draft prospect? Why would he have been one of the "big three" prospects in that class with Wiggins and Parker?

Use your noggin.

The version of Randle you described hasn't been drafted top 10 in decades.

If anything, Randle was more skilled than Zion at this stage (not by much - I'm not gonna withhold Zion his due because of his hype or athleticism). Overall, he wasn't nearly as effective, because, well.. he somehow had a foot less of vertical to work with at 25 lbs lighter.
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He didn't have the numbers of Zion because the scoring was spread out, not just from 2-3 players. We'll see how Zion does at the next level, when he plays against guys that are as strong as he is. He won't be able to shoot from the outside, so guys will be able to lay off him on the perimeter. Then he won't be able to get that first step past them and not get to the rim. NBA will be a totally different game. Don't get me wrong, he will be good and probably avg 16-17 ppg, but he is not LeBron and I doubt he will be a perennial all-star, unless fans just vote him in on his name.
 
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Ben101er said:
He didn't have the numbers of Zion because the scoring was spread out, not just from 2-3 players. We'll see how Zion does at the next level, when he plays against guys that are as strong as he is. He won't be able to shoot from the outside, so guys will be able to lay off him on the perimeter. Then he won't be able to get that first step past them and not get to the rim. NBA will be a totally different game. Don't get me wrong, he will be good and probably avg 16-17 ppg, but he is not LeBron and I doubt he will be a perennial all-star, unless fans just vote him in on his name.
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Every player going from college to pros has to adjust to bigger, stronger, faster athletes in the NBA. Teams are already laying off him on the perimeter in college.
 
Ben101er said:
He didn't have the numbers of Zion because the scoring was spread out, not just from 2-3 players. We'll see how Zion does at the next level, when he plays against guys that are as strong as he is. He won't be able to shoot from the outside, so guys will be able to lay off him on the perimeter. Then he won't be able to get that first step past them and not get to the rim. NBA will be a totally different game. Don't get me wrong, he will be good and probably avg 16-17 ppg, but he is not LeBron and I doubt he will be a perennial all-star, unless fans just vote him in on his name.
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I don’t think he’s LeBron either but I didn’t think LeBron would ever be in the conversation with Jordan. So who knows?
I do know that your first paragraph is exactly what everyone said about Zion coming out of high school and it hasn’t mattered. The problem with Zion is if someone is as strong as he is, they are nowhere near as quick and agile as he is. That’s also true in reverse. People that can stay with him have zero chance of keeping him out of the lane. He’s a constant mismatch.
 
Ben101er said:
He didn't have the numbers of Zion because the scoring was spread out, not just from 2-3 players. We'll see how Zion does at the next level, when he plays against guys that are as strong as he is. He won't be able to shoot from the outside, so guys will be able to lay off him on the perimeter. Then he won't be able to get that first step past them and not get to the rim. NBA will be a totally different game. Don't get me wrong, he will be good and probably avg 16-17 ppg, but he is not LeBron and I doubt he will be a perennial all-star, unless fans just vote him in on his name.
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Williamson won't be LeBron, but sorry, he's a lot better prospect than Randle ever was.

It's not a comparison that's completely off, because yeah, Randle is a very big guy who has good ballhandling skills that are the foundation of his game. The difference, besides the fact that Williamson is way more explosive, is that Williamson can beat guys off the dribble from almost anywhere on the floor. He plays the game like an attacking 2 guard, except he's huge. And because he's so much more explosive, he's much harder to stop around the rim.

Randle at UK was starting drives mostly from 15 feet and in. You couldn't iso him on a defender 25 feet from the basket and expect him to just blow by the guy. You can with Zion, which is where he's most similar to LeBron, though he obviously lacks the all-around skills that LeBron had (though I wouldn't overstate the shooting. LeBron was not, and really still isn't, all that great of a shooter. It's just a question of whether Williamson will be a total 0 with the jumpshot, or hit enough that it has to be respected).
 
Fox2monk said:
LeBron is the most physically gifted player ever. As great as Zion is LeBron is on another tier skills wise and his b-ball IQ is off the charts.
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I don’t know about that. Lebron is up there, but most physically gifted?
cats#1again said:
Zion wishes he was 6'8. I'm not so sure how fast he is either. He's so powerful that his avg speed is hard to handle.
To mention him in the same breathe as LBJ is ridiculous on work ethic alone. He should weigh 30 lbs less than he does and James is ripped out of his mind. You sure haven't ever seen James with extra fat on him.
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Magic and Lebron are 6’8. Not Zion. That is who I was referring too. Zion will never have the court awareness of those two. The only thing he sees is the rim. And that’s not such a bad thing considering he literally rips it apart on every dunk.
 
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Jpthegame said:
I don’t think he’s LeBron either but I didn’t think LeBron would ever be in the conversation with Jordan. So who knows?
I do know that your first paragraph is exactly what everyone said about Zion coming out of high school and it hasn’t mattered. The problem with Zion is if someone is as strong as he is, they are nowhere near as quick and agile as he is. That’s also true in reverse. People that can stay with him have zero chance of keeping him out of the lane. He’s a constant mismatch.
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That's my point. He shoots so badly that the defensive man can lay off him and stay in front of him. If he can't get his shoulder past you, and use his bulk, then he can't get to the rim. And with little outside game, they will lay off him and dare him to shoot. Not sure who said he would get matched up in college? Not me. I knew he would be a load for college kids to handle. That is why I wanted UK to get him. At the next level, it will be a different situation for him. Teams will not let him beat them by getting to the rim.
 
The best comparison is Charles Barkley. Maybe most folks here are just too young to remember but Barkley was insane.

I remember Auburn actually bringing him in off the bench when he was a freshman when Kentucky played down there and the Auburn crowd losing their minds...and Barkley proceeded to do Barkley things.
 
mj2k10 said:
Williamson won't be LeBron, but sorry, he's a lot better prospect than Randle ever was.

It's not a comparison that's completely off, because yeah, Randle is a very big guy who has good ballhandling skills that are the foundation of his game. The difference, besides the fact that Williamson is way more explosive, is that Williamson can beat guys off the dribble from almost anywhere on the floor. He plays the game like an attacking 2 guard, except he's huge. And because he's so much more explosive, he's much harder to stop around the rim.

Randle at UK was starting drives mostly from 15 feet and in. You couldn't iso him on a defender 25 feet from the basket and expect him to just blow by the guy. You can with Zion, which is where he's most similar to LeBron, though he obviously lacks the all-around skills that LeBron had (though I wouldn't overstate the shooting. LeBron was not, and really still isn't, all that great of a shooter. It's just a question of whether Williamson will be a total 0 with the jumpshot, or hit enough that it has to be respected).
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But, he won't blow by pros from 25 feet out. They are just as quick as he is, and they will lay off him about 5-6 feet because he can't shoot. It will change his game, completely.
 
CUJO_1970 said:
The best comparison is Charles Barkley. Maybe most folks here are just too young to remember but Barkley was insane.

I remember Auburn actually bringing him in off the bench when he was a freshman when Kentucky played down there and the Auburn crowd losing their minds...and Barkley proceeded to do Barkley things.
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But, it was a different game then, because of the lack of a 3pt line. The game was played more from 15 ft in than it is today. Barkley was definitely a load down low.
 
Ben101er said:
But, he won't blow by pros from 25 feet out. They are just as quick as he is, and they will lay off him about 5-6 feet because he can't shoot. It will change his game, completely.
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He's still a mismatch, and there's more space in the NBA game. And no, there aren't a lot of guys in the NBA who can stay in front of him. You act like his athleticism is limited to just the leaping ability. It's not. He's not as quick as LeBron, but he's definitely ++
 
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