Originally Posted by
JasonEvans
Nope, they will likely control him for either 6 or 7 more years (2 more years of his rookie deal and then either a 4 or 5 year second contract (if an extension, it could be 5 years, if they are matching a FA offer sheet, then it would likely be 4 years).
Zion could try to get cute and sign a shorter term free agent deal, allowing NO to match and letting him become a free agent sooner, but very few players do something like that. It is also possible that Zion will agitate to get out of NO if he does not like the direction the franchise is headed. We have seen many NBA stars engineer a departure from a city by merely being upset (AD, Harden, Westbrook, PG) and some have also found creative ways to hold out (cough, Kawhi, cough) until they got moved to the team they wanted.
So, bottom line, if Zion really wants out of NO, he can probably make it happen... but I don't even begin to get the impression that he is at that level of frustration with the franchise. They are still a young team and would seem to have some nice upside on their roster. They face some significant decisions this offseason with Hart and Ball both RFAs.