Zion Williamson is making his return to the court after a 27-game absence due to a hamstring strain. The New Orleans Pelicans announced that he will be back in action on Tuesday against the Minnesota Timberwolves. This comes as a relief for the struggling Pelicans, who have been plagued by injuries to key players like Brandon Ingram, Dejounte Murray, CJ McCollum, Herbert Jones, and Trey Murphy III.
Despite his injury history, Williamson signed a lucrative 5-year, $197 million extension with the Pelicans in 2022. However, the last three seasons of the deal are reportedly not guaranteed due to a games-played clause that was triggered when he only played 29 games in the 2022-23 season.
When healthy, Williamson has proven to be a dominant force on the court, averaging 24.6 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 4.2 assists with an impressive 58.7% field goal percentage over his career. In the six games he has played this season, he has averaged 22.7 points, eight rebounds, and 5.3 assists.
It will be interesting to see how Williamson’s return impacts the Pelicans as they look to turn their season around and climb up the standings in the Western Conference.