Scans since have revealed the bone is healing, just not at the rate of expectation.Īs a result, the confident projection of a home-opening debut on Oct. He and the team projected that optimism on media day, relaying the prognosis on Sept. New Orleans Pelicans coach Willie Green told reporters on Tuesday that Williamson has yet to be fully cleared to practice and is 2-3 weeks away from the next round of scans on his injured foot.ĭoctors initially told Williamson and the Pelicans the bone was expected to heal prior to the regular season, an optimistic timeline for his fracture. We do not know when exactly Williamson will be back on the court. We do know Williamson fractured the fifth metatarsal in his right foot in early August, two years after tearing the lateral meniscus in his right knee, and he has missed the start of the regular season for the second time in his three-year career.

He is also lightyears more athletic and explosive, which opens the floor to debate about whether his usage may actually put him at greater injury risk than those four players who battled against their weight during NBA careers cut short. The 6-foot-6 Williamson is shorter than all of them by three inches. In the NBA's database of official heights and weights over the past 25 years, only four other players have been listed shorter than 6-foot-10 and heavier than 280 pounds: Glen Davis, Robert Traylor, Jahidi White and Oliver Miller.

Zion Williamson is trying to defy history, but precedent is challenging the start to his NBA career.

Zion williamson stats.