Many issues have emerged since the NBA postponed its season due to the spread of coronavirus. One of those issues is the salaries of employees whose income depended on their work inside NBA arenas.
Zion Williamson is trying to help mitigate that problem as best he can.
The former Consensus National College Player of the Year announced in an Instagram post Friday that he's pledging to cover the salaries of all Smoothie King Center, the New Orleans Pelicans' home arena, workers for the next 30 days.
"My mother has always set an example for me about being respectful for others and being grateful for what we have," Williamson said in the post. "This is a small way for me to express my support and appreciation for these wonderful people who have been so great to me and my teammates and hopefully we can all join together to relieve some of the stress and hardship caused by this national health crisis."
The full post can be found below.
Several other NBA players, such as the Cleveland Cavaliers' Kevin Love, Milwaukee Bucks' Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Detroit Pistons' Blake Griffin, have also pledged large sums of money to help the staff of their home arenas.
After missing the first 44 games of the season following knee surgery, Williamson had been a revelation for the Pelicans prior to the NBA's suspension, averaging 23.6 points and 6.8 rebounds per game since his return Jan. 22.
New Orleans went 11-9 during that time frame after going 17-27 during Williamson's absence, and were just 3.5 games behind the Memphis Grizzlies for the final playoff spot in the Western Conference before the season came to an abrupt halt.
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