Zion Williamson was the recipient of lots of hype when he came into the NBA for the 2019-20 season, but he hasn’t lived up to that hype thus far, mostly because he hasn’t been able to stay healthy.
He has had one injury after another over the years, and he is currently dealing with a hamstring ailment that will keep him out indefinitely, which has derailed the hopes of a talented New Orleans Pelicans team.
Former NBA star big man DeMarcus Cousins, who himself once played for the Pelicans but also had his own injury problems, said that New Orleans hasn’t exactly been the best place for Williamson to become his best self, per NBACentral.
“To put that kid in that situation and expect him to thrive in it, that was the first mistake,” Cousins said.
Boogie Cousins believes that Zion Williamson was set up to fail by being drafted to a city like New Orleans
“To put that kid in that situation and expect him to thrive in it, that was the first mistake.”
(🎥 @RunItBackFDTV )
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) November 27, 2024
New Orleans is a city in a region that is known for the type of food that can pack on the pounds, as Cousins noted, and thus, it hasn’t exactly been the ideal situation for someone such as Williamson who already had a weight problem.
He weighed about 280 pounds by the end of his lone season at Duke University, and some have speculated that his weight and diet have been a major reason for his injury woes.
When he has played, however, Williamson has been an awesome force on offense.
He has career averages of 24.6 points a game on 58.7 percent field-goal shooting, and he has been borderline unstoppable in the paint.
People have waited for the Pelicans to become contenders over the last couple of years, but unless Williamson finds a way to avoid significant injury, it simply won’t happen.
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