The New Orleans Pelicans won their lone game road trip and are back in Louisiana for a five-game homestand. The Houston Rockets are first of their next five opponents. Led by Fred VanVleet and Dillon Brooks, the Rockets are quite a formidable team. For the Pelicans to begin their homestand, the availability of Zion Williamson will be of the utmost importance.
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The New Orleans Pelicans have been in fine form, having won five of their last six matchups. For the majority of this stretch, the team has been healthy. However, there are four names added to the injury report ahead of their fixture against the Houston Rockets. Matt Ryan and Larry Nance Jr. continue to remain “OUT”. Whereas, joining Cody Zeller, Zion Williamson is listed as “Questionable”.
Zion was added to the team’s injury report before their previous matchup against the Cleveland Cavaliers. After suiting up against the Grizzlies, despite suffering this same illness, Williamson was expected to take on the floor on Thursday night. However, the Pels coaching staff rested their star forward and were still able to pull off a victory.
Zion Williamson has only missed a handful of games this season
Zion Williamson is one of the most talented youngsters in the league. When healthy, the former Duke Blue Devil can take over the game by his ability to dominate the paint. However, Williamson’s young career has been injury-riddled.
Throughout his first four campaigns, Zion suited up for only 114 out of 308 regular seasons. For the entirety of the 2021-2022 season, the All-Star was sidelined with a foot injury.
This campaign has been different for the southpaw. He’s only missed out on six of the first 29 games. But, his performance in those 23 games hasn’t been consistent. As surprising as it sounds, Zanos’ stats from this season look quite similar to his stats from his rookie year.
During the 2019-2020 campaign, Williamson played 24 games and lodged 22.5 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 2.5 turnovers per game. This season, the high-flying forward has put up 22 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 2.5 turnovers per game.
Despite Zion’s subpar display, Willie Green’s boys are sitting 6th in the Western Conference above powerhouses such as the Lakers and the Suns. However, the team can certainly finish the regular season as a top-four seed if Williamson can pick up the tempo and start performing like the All-NBA player that he was always projected to be.
