Scandalized Pelicans star Zion Williamson’s name has been circulating in NBA trade rumors amid allegations of infidelity, but according to New Orleans executive David Griffin, reports of a deal aren’t based in fact.
‘I think what’s unfortunate is that he’s a name that generates clicks no matter what the link says,’ Griffin told Sirius XM’s Justin Termine and Amin Alhassan. ‘Zion puts on his socks. People click on that. So it makes it really easy for people to manufacture rumor around him — because they don’t have to have any actual credibility behind what they say to generate clicks.’
Griffin wasn’t referring to Moriah Mills, the porn star who claimed she had an affair with Williamson as his girlfriend announced that she is pregnant with his child. Instead, Griffin appeared to be addressing reported trade discussions about Williamson.
‘We never had a single [trade] conversation that Zion was part of,’ Griffin said. ‘I think people perceived that we would be willing to move off of Zion because of all the injuries, because there’s always so much noise around Zion… Fortunately for us, the noise never matches what we’re actually experiencing.’
Zion Williamson (left) recently announced that his long-term girlfriend is pregnant, only to have porn star Moriah Mills (right) accuse him of infidelity in the following days
New Orleans executive David Griffin dismissed the Williamson trade talk as fictitious
Williamson has battled injuries, weight issues, and now the ongoing Mills scandal. He showed some promise in December averaging an impressive 29.8 points over 12 games, but Williamson suffered a hamstring injury in early January and did not play again for the rest of the season.
As a result, Williamson’s name has been floated in various trade reports involving Portland Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard and the Charlotte Hornets’ second-overall pick in last month’s draft, which was ultimately used to select Brandon Miller out of Alabama.
Williamson’s current issues began on June 6, when he and his girlfriend announced they were having a baby, prompting Mills to respond on social media.
‘Better pray I’m not pregnant too because I’m definitely late @Zionwilliamson,’ Mills tweeted, sparking the ongoing scandal.
She claimed she has been involved with Williamson since 2021 and referred to his girlfriend Ahkeema as ‘a low budget porn star.’
The spat took a sinister twist the next day when Mills said culpability lies with Williamson if she is endangered after alleging she has been threatened by a relative of his girlfriend, Ahkeema.
‘I’m being harassed now @Zionwilliamson,’ she said. ‘I don’t like didn’t threaten anyone if anything happens to me in Atlanta before December. This is getting out of hand. You need to call your people’s (sic) Zion thanks I’m done.’
Mills has previously posted on Twitter – threatening to release the alleged tapes publicly
Williamson, 22, has not responded directly to Mills but did appear to be in damage control mode in the days after Mills made her claims, donating $250,000 to local schools in Louisiana.
Meanwhile, a fan subscription site, Unfiltrd, is offering Mills $1million to get exclusive rights to the alleged recording of a sex tape with Williamson.
‘Unfiltrd is increasing in popularity due to the onboarding of household names in the adult entertainment industry,’ said Stephanie Matto, founder and CEO of Unfiltrd.
‘We are confident that Mills will be able to monetize her explicit content on Unfiltrd in ways that she won’t be able to elsewhere.’
This proposition includes the rights to videos and direct messages between her and Williamson. It also includes a video release event taking place at a nightclub in New Orleans.
Mills’ management was contacted last Sunday with a one-week deadline to respond – meaning she must do so by July 2. It’s not clear if Mills accepted or declined the offer.
The adult performer has spent the past few weeks publicly attacking the forward on social media after Williamson posted behind-the-scenes images of a gender reveal party for his soon-to-arrive child.
Williamson and his girlfriend Ahkeema (right) recently announced they’re expecting a child
Williamson and his girlfriend shared a behind the scenes look at their gender reveal June 6
Mills has been trying to get attention from Williamson – to which he has not publicly made a comment.
Her attempts have including posting a picture of a positive pregnancy test on her Instagram story. She also posted a poll asking followers what she should name her child – with the options being ‘Junior’ and ‘Zoriah’, a blend of Zion and Moriah.
All this seems to suggest that the child is Williamson’s, however there is no evidence publicly available to determine whether or not this is the case.
Mills also posted a video of herself getting a ‘tattoo’ of Zion’s name on her face.
However, there are a number of indicators that this was faked – including a full face of makeup she had on the area she was getting tattooed as well as a lack of redness and swelling around the area.
Additionally, in subsequent posts to social media, Mills has avoided showing the supposed tattoo.
Mills has also previously uploaded multiple screenshots of alleged conversations she and Williamson sent – including messages discussing Zion sending her money and offering to book a flight for her.
Mills has posted many times to try and get Williamson’s attention. This has included a video of herself getting a ‘tattoo’ of Zion Williamson’s name on her face and a positive pregnancy test.
Williamson has also been described as a ‘nasty sex addict’ by Yamille Taylor, a ‘digital creator’
In the caption on the posts containing those the screenshots, Mills wrote: ‘Where is my wire transfer Zion Williamson, you a liar and a cheat where the f*** is my money,’ before including the Pelicans and urging them to ‘trade this fraud’.
In many other tweets, Mills claimed ‘it’s over for you’ and insisted his ‘NBA career light will be dimmed once the sex tapes release.’
Williamson has still yet to make comments of any kind about this situation. But others have made similar accusations as Mills.
Weeks ago, a third woman – Yamille Taylor – blasted the former Duke player, calling him a ‘sex addict’.