Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports
New Orleans Pelicans forward Zion Williamson reportedly weighs less than he did during his time at Duke University.
A photo of the two-time All-Star went viral over the weekend, as he showed off a slimmed down build. It appears that the Pelicans star wants to be even slimmer by the time the 2024-25 regular season kicks off.
“Williamson reportedly said he’s currently 281 pounds, less than he weighed at Duke (285), and intends to be 272 when the NBA regular season begins,” Yahoo! Sports’ Ian Casselberry wrote.
Pelicans fans have to be excited about Williamson’s commitment to losing weight, especially since it could help him stay healthier going forward in his NBA career.
The No. 1 overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, Williamson is coming off a strong 2023-24 season where he played in a career-high 70 games. Prior to last season, Williamson had never played in more than 61 games in a single season and had played less than 30 games in multiple campaigns.
A foot injury also cost the high-flying forward the entire 2021-22 season.
The Pelicans made the playoffs in the 2023-24 season, but they didn’t end up winning a game in the first round against the Oklahoma City Thunder. A big reason why was the absence of Williamson, as he injured his hamstring in the team’s play-in tournament loss to the Los Angeles Lakers.
In that game against Los Angeles, Williamson put together one of the best performances of his career, scoring 40 points on 17-of-27 shooting while adding 11 rebounds, five assists, one steal and one block.
Despite his injury history, Williamson is still one of the most dynamic scorers in the NBA when he’s able to play. Last season, he averaged 22.9 points, 5.8 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game while shooting 57.0 percent from the field and 33.3 percent from 3-point range.
He still has several pounds he needs to lose to reach his goal, but there is still plenty of time for him to get it done before the regular season begins in late October.
With the Pelicans adding former All-Star guard Dejounte Murray in a trade this offseason, there are high expectations for Williamson, Brandon Ingram and the rest of the Pelicans to make a playoff run – especially if the former No. 1 overall pick is able to stay healthy.
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