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New Orleans Pelicans Reveal Zion Williamson’s Injury After Crunch Time Exit in Play-In Loss Vs. Lakers

Originally posted on Hardwood Heroics | By Paolo Songco | Last updated 4/17/24

Zion Williamson was balling out on Tuesday night as he did everything he could to carry the New Orleans Pelicans to a victory against LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers. Unfortunately, the 23-year-old was forced to exit the game with just three minutes remaining in the fourth quarter with a mysterious injury.

Williamson was on absolute fire and was already up to 40 points at that point in the game, so you just know it wasn’t a simple injury that forced him back to the locker room with New Orleans’ season hanging in the balance.

Without Zion, the Pelicans fell to the Lakers in an extremely tight encounter, 110-106.

New Orleans Pelicans News: Zion Williamson Forced to Leave Lakers Game With Injury

Williamson was grimacing in pain after scoring his 40th point of the ballgame. He was signaling to the bench as he headed back to the opposite side of the floor, which seems to indicate that he may have tweaked something as he drove past Lakers star Anthony Davis:

Zion left the game with 3 min left after an apparent injury pic.twitter.com/dmSjuoxgzs

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) April 17, 2024

During the next timeout, Zion was seen angrily throwing a towel to the floor as he headed back to the locker room:

rtjnhsjotrghor pic.twitter.com/xKNwFR7uwg

— Erick Savage (@ErickSavage13) April 17, 2024

He did not return.

In 36 minutes played in his first-ever postseason game, Williamson finished with a season-high 40 points on 17-of-27 shooting, to go along with 11 rebounds, five assists, a steal, and a block.

Zion Williamson Suffered ‘Leg Soreness’

Pelicans head coach Willie Green spoke to reporters after the loss and unsurprisingly, most of the attention was on Zion’s injury. According to Green, the initial diagnosis is a sore leg:

“Willie Green says it’s left leg soreness for Zion Williamson and he will get imaging done tomorrow,” reported Andrew Lopez of ESPN.

The New Orleans coach wasn’t able to provide any information about the extent of the injury and as he said, we will all find out tomorrow once the results of his tests come out. For now, Pelicans fans will need to hope that this is nothing serious.

New Orleans will now face the winners of Tuesday’s second Play-In game between the Sacramento Kings and the Golden State Warriors to determine the eighth and final playoff seed in the West.