New Orleans Pelicans head coach Willie Green told NBA reporters that Zion Williamson has been diagnosed with a left middle finger contusion.
Williamson suffered the injury on Wednesday (4/3) against the Orlando Magic.
Williamson has appeared in 65 games this season. He’s averaging 22.8 points, 5.8 rebounds, 5.0 assists, 1.0 steals and 0.6 blocks while shooting 58.1% from the field, 35.7% from beyond the arc and 69.4% from the free-throw line.
The Pelicans are 45-31 on the season. They are in seventh place in the Western Conference standings.
If the regular season ended today, the Pelicans would face the Sacramento Kings in the 7-8 play-in tournament game.
New Orleans is 13th in the NBA in points per game, eighth in points per game allowed and sixth in net rating.
According to NBA insider Brian Windhorst of ESPN, Williamson has lost 25 pounds since December.
“I’ve got people in New Orleans telling me that since December, when the In-Season Tournament happened, that Zion Williamson has lost 25 or more pounds and his performance has been excellent,” Windhorst said. “He’s playing fewer minutes and I think that helps as well, but I’ve got people telling me he’s lost 25 pounds.”
Williamson has been playing at a high level ever since New Orleans lost to the Los Angeles Lakers on December 7 in Las Vegas during the In-Season Tournament.
During an interview with NBA reporter William Guillory of The Athletic, Williamson said “people don’t understand” how much he loves basketball.
“People don’t understand how much I really love this s—,” Williamson said. “I pour everything into doing my best for the team and for the people who support me in New Orleans. I get it. You can only go off the information that’s in front of you. But that’s the great thing about the opportunity we have the rest of the way. We get to write our own story.”
The Pelicans signed Williamson to a five-year, $197 million extension in July 2022.
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