Zion Williamson Injury Update: The Pelicans have suffered a foot injury; training is reduced

Zion Williamson There has been a step back in returning to competition. While he was scheduled to practice with New Orleans Pelicans Last week, aching feet prevented him from doing so. At first, it was considered a small delay, as first reported by ESPN’s Andrew Lopez and The Athletic’s Will Guillory, but the pain hasn’t subsided, and the team announced Saturday afternoon that his training will be eased until his leg heals.

This is more from the Pelicans:

“Following persistent pain in his right foot, Zion Williamson underwent medical imaging that showed deterioration in healing in his fifth ankle. Hence the volume and intensity of training. his will be reduced for an extended period to help continue bone healing. Additional updates will be provided as warranted.”

Williamson played 4v4, per ESPNBut, because his leg hurt, the Pelicans went back to his workload. Now, however, after images show deterioration in the healing of his right foot, it looks like the timeline for Williamson’s return to the floor will be pushed even further.

This is a tough blow for Williamson, especially after the Pelicans, specifically head coach Willie Green, said the team was “very optimistic” that the soreness would go away in a few days and would be able to intensify. Williamson’s activity returns. That doesn’t seem to be the case, and now the Pelicans will have to go much longer without their franchise star. Green also added that Williamson had “cut his tail” to return and was “disappointed”, but understood he had to “continue to overcome these obstacles.”

Without Williamson, the Pelicans are 8-20 in the season, with the fifth-worst net rating in NBA. Williamson hasn’t played a game since early May of last season, but this current injury is the one he has suffered all season. The Pelicans had initially said at Media Day that he would be ready for the opening night of the 2021-22 season, but that clearly hasn’t happened, as the timeline for his return continues to change. change.