The New Orleans Pelicans will be dialing back Zion Williamson’s workload after the power forward started experiencing soreness in his surgically repaired right foot, head coach Willie Green said Thursday.
Williamson was held out of practice Thursday.
The move will likely further delay Williamson’s return to game action. Williamson had been participating in 4-on-4 work, but the team will back off of that for a few days in favor of low-impact workouts.
“It’s a part of the process,” Green said. “When you’re dealing with injuries and you ramp up some, there’s a possibility you can deal with a little bit of soreness which he’s dealing with now.”
On Nov. 26, the team announced Williamson was medically cleared to return to full participation following offseason foot surgery.
Williamson, 21, has yet to play in the 2021-22 season, and the Pelicans have struggled without him. New Orleans has the fourth-worst record in the NBA at 6-18.
The top overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft played in just 85 games (all starts) in the first two seasons of his NBA career after one attention-grabbing college season at Duke.
Williamson has averaged 25.7 points and 7.0 rebounds per game with an All-Star selection in 2020-21.
–Field Level Media