Pelicans Provide Surprise Zion Williamson Injury Update Ahead of Sunday's Game vs. Bulls

The New Orleans Pelicans may get their star power forward sooner than initially thought.

Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

On December 2nd, ESPN's Shams Charania reported that the New Orleans Pelicans power forward Zion Williamson suffered a right adductor injury and would be re-evaluated in three weeks. 11 days later, however, the Pelicans received unexpected positive news about Williamson's return.

On Saturday, team reporter Erin Summers revealed that Williamson returned to practice and is listed as questionable for the game against the Bulls on Sunday.

Zion Williamson Nearing an Earlier Than Expected Return for the Pelicans

This is especially surprising, considering that Williamson is rarely ahead of schedule in return from injury. Pelicans fans are all too familiar with Williamson's return taking longer than expected, which has caused frustration about the organization's lack of transparency in injury reporting.

This time around, the script has been flipped. While many expected the 25-year-old to miss at least a month, he is nearing a return less than two weeks after suffering the injury.

Regardless of whether he suits up against the Bulls or not, this is an excellent development for the Pels. Not only will having Williamson in the starting lineup give a massive boost to the Pelicans, but he can also showcase his trade value before the deadline. If Williamson can stay healthy and produce without any major setbacks, he should have some suitors at the trade deadline.

The two-time All-Star has had frustrating injury concerns throughout his career and is not the same unstoppable force he was earlier in his Pels tenure. At the same time, he is still a net positive for the team. This season, the Pelicans are 5.7 points per 100 possessions better with him on the floor than off. Last season, this net rating difference was +11.3. Even though New Orleans has been one of the worst teams in the league two years in a row, with Williamson on the court, they continue to be respectable.

The problem has long been the fact that the times he has been on the court have been few and far between. He has already missed 16 games this season after missing 52 in the 2024-25 campaign. Until further notice, he will likely continue to skip one end of back-to-backs. This makes him a difficult player to build around, no matter how talented he is, especially on the offensive end.

How much longer the Zion Williamson era in New Orleans will last remains to be seen, but he will undoubtedly make the 4-22 Pelicans more watchable and competitive going forward.