The six-time All-Star thinks middies will be good for Zion Williamson.
In the early days of his career, Amar’e Stoudemire was one of the scariest players to defend.
He was a 6-10, 245-pound power forward who had unlimited NOS containers in his legs (if you’re not a Fast and Furious fan, swap out NOS containers with dynamites).
He was explosive and used his explosiveness every chance he got.
As a result, he posterized many defenders.
However, right before his fourth NBA season, the Phoenix Suns discovered that he had knee cartilage damage that required surgery.
This forced him to sit out the majority of the 2005-06 season (played 3 games).
But Stoudemire came back the following season as if he never took time off; he got right back to his All-Star form.
So, why am I telling this story?
Well, it’s because the New Orleans Pelicans’ Zion Williamson is in a similar situation and Stoudemire has some advice for him.
Williamson was drafted in 2019 and was expected to be the most dominant player in the NBA because of his skills and explosiveness. He was expected to be the next superstar.
But injuries are constant in his career. They’re the only factors holding him back.
So, when asked what advice he would give Williamson, Stoudemire told The OGs’ hosts Mike Miller and Udonis Haslem that Zion should work on his perimeter game.
“It’s tough when health is an issue and you can’t play and perform on a consistent basis. And then now you’re second guessing your athleticism, you’re second guessing your game and then now it prevents -it stops you from being able to improve because you gotta work on recovery. I think for Zion, if he work on his perimeter skills, right? He get a lot of points in the paint and that’s based off of athleticism. But as you get older and time kick in, you gotta be able to shoot the rock, make decisions off the dribble. So, I think just kind of improving his game on the perimeter side and then also keeping that aggression in the paint flow, will be helpful for him.”
They also added that playing in the paint is tough on the body.
“People don’t understand how gruelling it is on your body,” Miller said. “People don’t understand how gruelling that is for 82 games to be just a savage in the paint and attack and hit bodies and do that stuff. As your career goes on, like you said, you have to lean on -it’s like LeBron. LeBron is a 3-point shooter. You have to lean on something else.”
When Stoudemire came back from his season off, he changed how he played.
He implemented mid-range jumpers and was shooting more. He still got his posters, but he wasn’t trying to dunk every play.
He went from getting 66.5 percent of his points in the paint in his rookie season to 59 percent in his fifth season.
Additionally, he averaged less than that throughout the entirety of his prime.
And his career thrived for many more years, which was rare for players who suffered the injury he did.
So, do you think shooting more middies can nudge Zion back onto the path to superstardom?