Let him play — it’s his life, not the Twitterverse’s

THE hot takes began flying as soon as Zion Williamson left the floor. Social media began buzzing that Duke’s phenomenal freshman shouldn’t step on a college basketball floor again. And when he was ruled out with a right knee injury, those takes multiplied exponentially.

Why risk his pro future any longer? Shut it down now. Prepare for the NBA draft.

Except, this is what Williamson recently told Andy Katz of NCAA.com: “I always knew I would go to college. Even if they would’ve had the NBA rule, I still would’ve came to college. You’re never going to get this experience again. Once you go to the league, it’s grown men, kids, families. It’s not just teenagers having fun. It’s business then.”

Everyone should listen to him, and let him make his own decisions. Williamson was having the time of his life before this injury, the story of the sport, leading Duke to the No. 1 ranking and likely a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Then, 36 seconds into the biggest game of his career, the first of two Duke-North Carolina showdowns, he went down, suffering what coach Mike Krzyzewski described as a “mild knee sprain.”

The 6-foot-7, 285-pound athletic freak grabbed his right knee in pain after slipping and falling when his left Nike sneaker fell apart as he planted while putting the ball on the floor near the free-throw line. He walked off the court under his own power, limping to the locker room. He wouldn’t return, and shell-shocked top-ranked Duke wouldn’t be the same, falling to No. 8 North Carolina, 88-72, at Cameron Indoor Stadium for its third loss of the season.

For now, Coach K said the knee is stable and they’ll have a better idea Thursday of how long Williamson will be out. Rushing to suggest Williamson pack it in and get ready for the draft is premature, unless that’s what he really wants. It’s his life, and college seems to be suiting him fine. A sprained knee doesn’t change that.

Williamson came to the Garden in December to face Texas Tech. In the Duke locker room after the victory, he was surrounded by reporters asking him about the NBA and potentially playing for the Knicks.

He was polite, and answered the questions like a professional. But you could tell by his smile when the topic turned to his teammates or the victory or just Duke, that he didn’t want to be a pro just yet. He was having too much fun getting the most out of this one year in college.

He’s obviously an extremely valuable commodity, the almostcertain No. 1 pick in the June draft. The only thing that can stop him is a debilitating injury. There are reasons to be cautious after this injury. Nobody is saying there won’t be risk.

But Zion Williamson, when healthy, should continue playing college basketball for Duke. Who knows? A national championship could be the highlight of his career. He said it himself: He’s never going to get this experience again. Let him have it.