Former Duke basketball star Zion Williamson nearing contract extension with New Orleans Pelicans

It appears Zion Williamson will remain in New Orleans for the foreseeable future.

The former Duke basketball star and No. 1 overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, Williamson and the Pelicans are nearing a five-year rookie max contract extension worth up to $231 million, according to a report from The Athletic's Shams Charania.

The commitment will take Williamson's new deal through the 2027-2028 season.

On June 9, Pelicans lead executive David Griffin on The Ryen Russillo Podcast called it an “easy decision” to offer Williamson a max deal.

When he's played, Williamson has shown his ability to be one of the more dominant players in the league, but staying healthy has been his biggest issue during the past three seasons.

Williamson has suited up in 85 of a possible 226 games thus far in his career. He missed the first 44 games of his rookie season while recovering from a meniscus tear in his right knee, and he was sidelined for the entirety of his third season because of a broken right foot.

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The news comes a day after the Memphis Grizzlies and point guard Ja Morant, the No. 2 pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, agreed to a record-breaking five-year contract extension worth $193 million, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.

The extension is the largest deal in franchise history. Morant earned his first All-Star appearance and was named second-team All-NBA after leading Memphis to a 56-26 record.

David Thompson is an award-winning reporter for the USA Today Network covering NC State and Duke athletics. He can be reached at dthompson1@gannett.com, at 828-231-1747, or on Twitter at @daveth89.

This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: Zion Williamson nearing contract extension with New Orleans Pelicans