Zion Williamson is going viral this offseason and for a good reason. In his college days at Duke, the New Orleans Pelicans star weighed at least 285 pounds, but he is looking shredded in his recent picture, weighing at 281 pounds. His stepfather said he’s looking to trim down to 272 pounds before the next season begins.
The Pelicans forward is seeing his efforts take fruit, and people in the NBA have also taken notice, with analyst Stephen A. Smith being the latest to praise the player but not before citing his issue with food.
“His (WIlliamson) problem was food,” Smith said on his show on Thursday. “I’m not exaggerating when I tell y’all, you got people in the NBA that says, ‘He was hiding food under his bed,’ because the Pelicans obviously had people checking up on him to make sure he tried to engage in some level of containment when it came to his diet, and that brother wasn’t trying to hear it.”
Williamson has been known not necessarily for his talent on the court but for his physical condition and history of injuries. His conditioning has been a hot topic in the past few seasons. According to various reports, his contract extension has a weight stipulation that would require him to pass six weigh-in checkpoints so he could receive at least 20 percent of his approximately $40 million salary in the 2025–26 season.
Zion WIlliamson’s health determines Pelicans’ success
The last three NBA seasons practically demonstrated how integral Zion Williamson is to the success of the New Orleans Pelicans.
In the 2021-22 season, the team made the playoffs without Williamson, who had been for the season due to a foot injury. They pushed the Phoenix Suns to six games in the first round of the playoffs before ultimately losing.
Williamson returned in the 2022-23 season, putting the Pelicans back into the conversation as a potential contender in the Western Conference Finals. He averaged 26.0 points from 60.8 shooting percentage, 7.0 rebounds, and 4.6 assists before suffering a hamstring injury in January 2023 and being ruled out for the rest of the season. He only played 29 games that season, and the Pelicans didn’t qualify for the playoffs.
New Orleans had their best chance to make waves in the Western Conference Playoffs last season, with WIlliamson playing a career-high 70 games and averaging 22.9 points on 57.0% shooting, 5.8 rebounds, and 5.0 assists per game. However, they were unable to keep their seventh-seed position in a game against the then-eighth-seed LA Lakers despite Williamson’s 40 points after he suffered another injury that night.
The Pelicans won the eighth seed against the Sacramento Kings without Williamson, setting up a first-round series with the OKC Thunder, but the forward never returned from injury, causing the team to fall to a 0-4 sweep.
Williamson may have better chances to lead his team to contenders this season with his recent transformation and resolve to trim down.
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