Pelicans VP commits to Zion Williamson's future with team despite lawsuit alleging rape, abuse

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The New Orleans Pelicans will not part ways with star forward Zion Williamson after he was accused of rape and other physical abuse by a woman in a lawsuit filed last week, a team executive said in an interview Wednesday. 

Joe Dumars, a Hall of Fame player who was named the Pelicans’ executive vice president of basketball operations in April, confirmed the team’s decision in an interview with The New Orleans Times-Picayune Wednesday, adding Williamson will "continue to be a focal point" of the organization. 

New Orleans Pelicans forward Zion Williamson during the second half of a game against the Dallas Mavericks at the American Airlines Center Feb. 21, 2025.  (Jerome Miron/Imagn Images)

"I've had really good conversations with Zion," Dumars told the outlet. "We've had lunch. Dinner. Watched playoff games together. We've done it all. I've had some real honest conversations with him. Some real direct and honest conversations. 

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"We're going to go forward with Zion," he continued. "He's going to continue to be a focal point here as we go forward."

Dumars made his comments less than a week after a woman, who claimed to be in a relationship with Williamson while he played at Duke, filed a lawsuit alleging that the two-time NBA All-Star engaged in a "pattern of abusive, controlling, and threatening behavior," according to reports. 

The lawsuit accused Williamson of rape on two separate occasions in 2020. 

According to the New York Post, in one instance, the woman claimed Williamson "picked her up, threw her down to the ground, and pinned her shoulders down so she could not move," and