It has been a while since the New Orleans Pelicans have been a legitimate threat in the NBA. They haven’t won a playoff series since the 2017-18 season, and overall, they have won just one postseason series since 2008.
This is despite the fact that they have had a solid amount of talent over the last few years. Their most talented player has been forward Zion Williamson, the No. 1 pick in the 2019 draft who has spent a considerable amount of time on the sidelines due to injury.
Williamson has been criticized for not taking proper care of his body, which has likely contributed to his many injuries. But as training camp unfolds for the Pelicans, it looks like he has finally dropped some weight and gotten into much better shape.
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When Williamson has been healthy, he has been an irresistible force offensively. He has a career average of 24.7 points a game on 58.9% field-goal shooting, and when he gets into the paint, he’s nearly unstoppable thanks to his wide 6-foot-6 frame. He has even expanded his game by averaging at least five assists per game during the last two seasons.
But he has been unable to stay healthy. He tore his meniscus in a preseason game during his rookie season and was limited to 24 games that year. A Jones fracture cost him all of the 2021-22 campaign, while a hamstring injury he suffered in early January of 2023 prematurely ended the following season for him.
Last season, Williamson had another hamstring ailment, as well as a back contusion, and he only appeared in 30 contests as a result.
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The Pelicans’ roster looks a lot different from the way it did a year ago. They traded away sharpshooting guard CJ McCollum this summer, and they jettisoned star forward Brandon Ingram prior to last season’s trade deadline. Their main threats this season, other than Williamson, will be Jordan Poole, a guard who won an NBA championship three years ago with the Golden State Warriors, and Dejounte Murray, a former All-Star guard who tore his Achilles in late January.
They will likely miss the playoffs this season once again, but perhaps Williamson will remain relatively healthy and start to silence his critics with his new and leaner figure.
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