Zion Williams Pledges To Cover Salaries of Pelicans’ Arena Employees

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Mar 13, 2020

Kevin Love started a heartwarming trend.

In the aftermath of the NBA suspending its season indefinitely, in attempt to help stop the spread of coronavirus, the Cleveland Cavaliers star donated $100 thousand to game-day employees of the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.

Love set quite the example for the NBA’s most prolific rookie, among others.

Zion Williams on Friday pledged to cover the cost of all Smoothie King Center employees for the next 30 days while NBA games are paused to help alleviate their stress while out of work.

The Duke product posted the message on his Instagram account with an inspiring message, noting that many New Orleans Pelicans arena employees are still reeling from Hurricane Katrina.

“These are the folks who make our games possible, creating the perfect environment for our fans and everyone involved in the organization,” Williamson’s caption read. “Unfortunately, many of them are still recovering from long term challenges created by Katrina, and now face the economic impact of the postponement of games because of the virus.”

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The people of New Orleans have been incredibly welcoming and supportive since I was Drafted by the Pels last June, and some of the most special people I have met are those who work at smoothie King Center. These are the folks who make our games possible, creating the perfect environment for our fans and everyone involved in the organization. Unfortunately, many of them are still recovering from long term challenges created by Katrina, and now face the economic impact of the postponement of games because of the virus. My mother has always set an example for me about being respectful for others and being grateful for what we have, and so today I am pledging to cover the salaries for all of those Smoothie King Center workers for the next 30 days. 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. This is an incredibly resilient city full of some of the most resilient people, but sometimes providing a little extra assistance can make things a little easier for the community.

A post shared by Zion Williamson (@zionwilliamson) on

Of course, Williamson is poised to make tens of millions of dollars when all is said and done with his career, not including endorsement money.

Still, the generous donation from a player on his rookie deal shows that Williamson is a class act.

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Thumbnail photo via Derick E. Hingle/USA TODAY Sports Images
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