Is it time to be concerned about his NBA future?
In four seasons thus far with the New Orleans Pelicans, Zion Williamson has played only 114 regular-season games due to various injuries and rehab related issues. To put that in perspective, the top pick in the 2019 NBA Draft has missed roughly 60% of the games in his career.
And yet, Williamson and New Orleans agreed to a five-year contract extension worth up to $231M via bonuses and incentives. That extension will put Zion in a Pels uniform through the 2027-2028 campaign. For 2022-2023, Williamson earned $13.5 million dollars, or just shy of $500K per contest after missing the entire 2021-2022 season.
In 29 regular-season games, Williamson averaged 26 points, seven rebounds, 4.6 assists, 1.1 steals, and 60.8% field goal shooting in 33 minutes. The Pels went 17-12 with Williamson and 25-28 without. Despite missing Williamson for two thirds of the season, the Pelicans qualified for the play-in tournament with a 42-40 record only to be upended by the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Incidentally, Williamson was cleared to play the Pels’ play-in game against the Thunder, yet he and his camp decided against it because Zion wasn’t in the right frame of mind to suit up and play to his standard.
This raised many an eyebrow around the league, including those of NBA analyst Stephen A. Smith. As Smith would put it, Zion’s concerns, as valid as they are, should be a matter to be concerned with for the Pelicans.
Zion’s Health: A Liability?
While setbacks are part of the game, Williamson has become an injury magnet. He missed most of his rookie season due to a torn meniscus, the entire 2021-2022 season due to a Jones fracture, and only played 29 games this season due to a hamstring strain.
It was reported that he suffered a setback during All-Star weekend but eventually resumed basketball activities last March which should have made him ready for the play-in tournament.
While Zion was quick to point out that he loves this game, he also didn’t say when he could return to action. With reports swirling that the former Duke standout is facing a mental hurdle due to speculations that he doesn’t want to play, all is clearly not well in the Big Easy these days between the franchise and their top pick.
The Pels Face Uncertain Future With Zion
There’s no doubt in everyone’s mind that a healthy Zion Williamson is an unstoppable offensive force. However, you can’t be unstoppable on the court if your availability is constantly in question.
For a general manager paying $38.5M dollars on average annually to your superstar, you expect production. You expect playoff appearances. You expect a healthy superstar to play and dominate.
If you’re not getting the results, but still writing outsized cheques, it hamstrings the team’s finances in the long run. This is why insiders raise concerns about Zion Williamson’s future, not just in New Orleans but in the NBA as a whole.
The fact that Zion spent most of his young career injured should already be a sign of concern and yet, New Orleans agreed to a five-year rookie contract extension.
While he’s far from a sunk cost at this point, he’s undoubtedly trending in the wrong direction. If things start off on the right foot in 2023-24, the rumour mill will kick into full gear when it comes to New Orleans and the 6’6” power forward.
The Pelicans have few options beyond continuing to work with Williamson’s camp and hope that his health turns around. Trading an injury-plagued superstar presents a problem, as they’d be getting cents on the dollar in return for the former number 1 overall draft pick if they opted to move on from him.
The blueprint is there for him to turn things around. His 114 games played through the first 4 years of his career are still more than the 94 that current MVP finalist Joel Embiid played in his first 4 seasons. If New Orleans is able to get 60+ games out of Zion for multiple seasons in a row, they have to view that as a win.
But the new layer surrounding his mental health and weight is a new wrinkle which adds a Ben Simmons-esque layer of complexity to matters. One way or another, 2023-24 will be a very a telling season for Zion and his future in the NBA.
-Iggy Gonzales
Photo: Erik Drost. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.