Pelicans' Need to Trade Zion Williamson in the Offseason Is Painfully Clear

Zion Williamson deserves all the credit in the world for the work he has put in over the last year to improve his body and conditioning. The 25-year-old power forward has been healthier than he has been in a long time and looks fit and athletic. He has played a personal-best 35 games in a row this season and suited up in 49 of the Pelicans' last 50 games. As impressive as this has been, the Pelicans have no choice but to trade Williamson in the offseason.

Pelicans Can't Start Next Season With Both Zion Williamson and Derik Queen on the Roster

This became painfully obvious once again in the Pelicans' loss to the Houston Rockets on Sunday night. New Orleans got destroyed on the boards, giving up 22 offensive rebounds. This has been a trend all season as the Pelicans are the third-worst defensive rebounding team in the league.

While Williamson is not the only culprit, he plays a big part in New Orleans' rebounding struggles. For his position, Williamson is an awful defender. Despite his physical and athletic tools, Williamson is still undersized to play the four. He doesn't make up for the size deficiency with effort and discipline.

Rebounding is only a part of the problem with Williamson. He has been an improved defender this season, but he remains a liability on that end. He doesn't protect the rim and requires a center to play alongside him. He isn't particularly good at defending smaller perimeter players, either, creating defensive matchup issues.

Offensively, Williamson poses the same challenges as he always has. He doesn't shoot the ball at all. He remains a dangerous on-ball player and driver, but he is overly reliant on getting to the rim or the free-throw line. When defenses pack the paint, Williamson can't punish them with his outside shot.

This makes him a tough fit on that end, as well. Williamson is a better on-ball player than off-ball, meaning that the Pelicans need to give him the ball to create when he is on the court. This makes it difficult to play him next to other on-ball creators. He is still an efficient scorer, but his presence doesn't guarantee an above-average offense for your team like many elite shot creators do.

The big problem here is that he is an exceptionally poor fit next to Derik Queen. James Borrego has shied away from playing Queen and Williamson together. That duo can't defend or rebound, and haven't figured out a way to coexist offensively. Both players require a defense-first center next to them to survive on that end of the floor. They also both need the ball in their hands to be effective.

This creates a conundrum for the Pelicans that the only way out is trading one of Queen or Williamson. Considering that the team traded away an unprotected lottery pick for Queen less than a year ago, the odd man out has to be Williamson. Perhaps Williamson's streak of availability will have helped his trade value and will allow New Orleans to find a win-win deal to help usher in the next era of Pelicans basketball.