NBA Rumors: Zion Williamson has suffered another setback.
We may not see Zion Williamson in a New Orleans Pelicans for a while.
Just when it seemed like we were inching closer to Zion’s return to the Pelicans’ lineup, it has been announced that his rehabilitation process will be halted as his body is not healing at the rate at which the medical staff believed that it would.
Now, because his body needs more time to heal, there’s no guarantee that we’ll see Zion at all this season. And this latest report will only bring about more concern and questions regarding his future in the NBA.
SI’s Chris Mannix gave further insight into what exactly is hampering Zion’s potential return to the Pelicans’ lineup:
Tests indicate Zion Williamson is experiencing "regression in the bone healing of his fifth metatarsal," per Pelicans. Zion's rehab will be scaled back for an extended period.
— Chris Mannix (@SIChrisMannix) December 11, 2021
I’m not a doctor nor do I pretend to be one, but this doesn’t sound great by any means. This latest news is quite concerning. And not just as it pertains to this season for both Zion and the Pelicans. You can’t help but think what this setback could mean for his future in the NBA.
You don’t want to completely overreact to this latest piece of information, but let’s put his recent injury history into context. Even if Zion just misses half of this season – and, at this point, you’d have to imagine that his season may be in jeopardy – that means he’s already missed more games than he’s played in.
For any player, that’s not good. Even worse for a player that was supposed to be the savior for the franchise. The hope is that Zion can get healthy and become that franchise-changing player that many are hoping for him to be but at this point, I’m not sure that’s something that can be relied on.