Zion Williamson says comeback is not about 'losing a bunch of weight'

Williamson told Gilbert Arenas that being wealthy made it harder to eat healthy. "I'm 20, 22, have all the money in the world -- well, it feels like all the money in the world. It's hard."

The Pelicans star made a surprise appearance on "Gil's Arena" Monday night. By which we mean it was a surprise to Arenas himself, which is why Williamson didn't have his own microphone. Arenas and his co-hosts were talking and joking about young players and nutrition, with Arenas saying "Zion's gotta eat rabbit food" and suggesting that the Pelicans needed to "put him in prison" for a summer to make him slim down before Williamson dropped in.

Williamson played only 29 games last season due to a hamstring injury after missing all of the 2021-22 season with a foot injury. For his career, Williamson has played just 114 out of a possible 308 games, which has caused some to speculate about his weight. He's officially listed at 284 pounds, making him one of the league's heaviest players at just 6'6", and reportedly weighed over 300 pounds at training camp in 2021.

But Williamson says he's not focusing on diet, but trying to follow the example of LeBron James.

"It's more of locking in on flexibility, band work. I think it's those things that will be able to keep me on the court longer rather than losing a bunch of weight and coming to play," Williamson told Arenas and company.

It's been a tumultuous off-season for Williamson already. The Pelicans reportedly considered trading Williamson to move up in the draft. He announced the impending birth of his baby girl only to trigger a bizarre days-long Twitter tirade from an alleged girlfriend, who was ultimately suspended from the platform after threatening to release a sex tape of Williamson.

Williamson alluded to his difficulties, acknowledging, "I have to own up to my responsibilities. There are a lot of things I could have done better. I didn't. I'm in the process of fixing those wrongs."

But he doesn't think that necessarily means losing weight, which was a big part of Williamson's summer in 2022. His chef claimed he was losing "seven-to-nine pounds a week" and "you couldn't pay Zion to put his shirt on."

Williamson is almost certainly sick of the discussion of his weight - likely why he crashed Arenas' show to begin with. But claiming weight loss isn't important to his staying healthy feels like Williamson still isn't taking responsibility.