New Orleans Pelicans forward Zion Williamson (1) brings the ball up the court against the Utah Jazz during the first half at Delta Center. Rob Gray-Imagn Images

Pelicans' Zion Williamson fires back at popular narrative about him

Originally posted on Larry Brown Sports | By Grey Papke | Last updated Mar 2, 2026 4:11 PM ET

New Orleans Pelicans forward Zion Williamson revealed that there is one popular narrative about him that bothers him more than the others.

Williamson appeared on ESPN’s “NBA Today” on Monday and discussed some of the criticism he has received throughout his career.

He said the criticism that bothered him the most, however, was the assertion that he did not care about having a successful career.

“The part that would get at me the most is the people saying that I didn’t care,” Williamson said. “I care a lot. I’ve really cared. When you’re not on the court and you have to just sit on the sideline, (however) much my critics hate it, I hate it more than them. I don’t want to be on the sideline. I want to be out there on the court. That was part of the process of looking in the mirror. Am I doing enough? Am I really doing what I need to do?”

"The most difficult point was when I missed my third year with a broken foot. ... There was a lot of criticism on my weight, my care for the game. ... I was really low because I just wanted to play basketball."

Pelicans forward Zion Williamson on the most difficult point during… pic.twitter.com/tf9CnsZ3VX
— ESPN (@espn) March 2, 2026

Williamson has long been subject to a narrative of being injury-prone, having played 50 regular-season games only twice in his seven-year NBA career. The forward’s weight has often been a talking point, with some seizing on it as evidence that he does not care about trying to make himself less injury-prone and getting himself into the best possible playing shape.

There have also been moments when Williamson has contributed to the narrative himself, such as when he was suspended for being repeatedly late to team events last January.

This season, things have largely gone smoothly for Williamson, though he is currently dealing with an ankle injury. He has been able to play in 45 games and is averaging 21.5 points and 5.8 rebounds a game, though he is doing it on a lowly Pelicans team. There was talk that the team was ready to move on from him before the trade deadline, and that could resurface again in the summer.

This article first appeared on Larry Brown Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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