OKLAHOMA CITY – While the rest of his teammates stood in front of the scorer’s table going through their normal pregame handshake routine, Zion Williamson stood in front of the bench alone.
This was supposed to be the night he made his NBA playoff debut – a moment he’s waited for his entire life – but that’ll have to wait until another day.
In Game 1 of the Pelicans’ first-round series against the Oklahoma City Thunder, Williamson was stuck in a situation he’s experienced far too often. While his team took the floor in anticipation of another big game, he was on the side in street clothes recovering from an injury.
As the anticipation and the screams from a frenzied Oklahoma City crowd grew, the realization that Williamson wouldn’t achieve what he worked all season to accomplish started to settle in.
Yet, he wasn’t depressed or angry about it. In fact, he had a giant smile on his face as he soaked the environment in. After surveying the sea of white shirts in the crowd, he leaned over to the Pelicans assistants behind the bench and repeated a sentiment he’s expressed on multiple occasions this season:
“Man, I live for this type of s—,” he told his coaches.
After speaking to the media on Tuesday for the first time since his injury, he said being in the building for Game 1 was a “bittersweet” experience. However, part of the reason behind his cheery disposition was his belief that he could be back sooner than some expected.
“That is definitely realistic. That is absolutely realistic,” Williamson said of his potential return. “But like I said, I’ve got to pass the tests (and) get back to baseline. Hopefully, I’ll be out there.”
As much as the media and fans have tried to psychoanalyze him during his first five seasons as a pro, those who are around him on a regular basis all agree that his competitive drive is one of the primary reasons he’s become one of the brightest young stars in the game.
That competitiveness shined through the last time he took the floor in the Pelicans’ 110-106 Play-In game loss to the Los Angeles Lakers last Tuesday. After getting embarrassed at home by that same Lakers team two nights before in the regular-season finale, Williamson responded with one of his greatest performances in a Pelicans uniform.
He accounted for 40 points, 11 rebounds and five assists as the Pelicans roared their way back from an 18-point deficit. Then, it all ended in the blink of an eye.
After scoring his final basket of the night on a floater over Lakers center Anthony Davis, Williamson felt something in his left hamstring. He knew it wasn’t good. After spiking a towel to the floor, he walked to the locker room with 3:19 left in the game and didn’t return.
The thoughts raced through his mind along with everyone else in the building. But two words stood out more than any of the others:
Not again.
“Super demoralizing at first. Can’t lie,” Williamson said of the injury. “The season had been going so well. So for that to happen just definitely was demoralizing.”
Williamson said it took him a day or two to process the horrid timing of his injury and what it meant for his team. Then, optimism started to creep back in.
While a right hamstring injury was the cause for him missing the final 45 games of the 2022-23 season, Williamson said he immediately knew his injury from last week wasn’t as severe. He experienced a much “sharper pain” in his hamstring last season, according to Williamson.
After Pelicans practice on Tuesday, Williamson was already going through some strength and conditioning drills with trainers. For him to already be up and working out at this point in his rehabilitation is a great sign for his recovery.
While the timing of his injury was devastating, it doesn’t appear as if the injury itself fits that description.
When asked about getting back on the court this postseason, Williamson was adamant that it’s a strong possibility. He didn’t provide a specific timeline, but he didn’t sound like someone who plans on being sidelined for an extended period of time.
And based on the way he talked about being in the building in Game 1, it sounds like he’s intent on seeing what it feels like to be a part of a hostile playoff environment on the road.
“Man, I love hooping. I really love hooping. So it was bittersweet for me,” Williamson said. “The whole time I just kept envisioning myself out there; my impact on the game. But at the same time, I had to put aside my personal feelings and be there for my teammates. But the energy was great. OKC’s fans really came out and it was a playoff environment.”
His willingness to speak to the media is another sign that he’s feeling better and he’s not battling some of the mental hurdles that negatively affected him while he recovered from injuries the past two seasons.
After recovering from other injuries, he’s expressed that half the battle for him was not getting too down on himself and fully believing that his body could recover in time for him to get back on the court.
The optimism around Williamson and this injury is much higher than it was around this time last season. Williamson’s body is in a much better place from a physical shape standpoint. His dedication to his work behind the scenes is better than it’s ever been. And his devotion to his teammates and the overall team dynamic has improved immensely.
Williamson is all-in on making his comeback and there’s serious hope that he could make it happen.
Will he be cleared to play at some point during this first-round series against Oklahoma City? It’s certainly a possibility, even though there’s no guarantee it’ll happen. When the injury was announced by the team last Wednesday, they said he would be re-evaluated in two weeks. Based on that timeline, doctors should determine how far he’s come along in the recovery process ahead of a potential Game 5 in Oklahoma City on May 1.
Williamson’s presence in this series could be a game-changer for a Pelicans team that certainly proved they are capable of competing with the No. 1 seed in the West even without its best player.
If Williamson is able to come back, the possibility of New Orleans pulling off the upset in this series becomes very real.
But New Orleans has learned the downfalls of rushing the recovery of a hamstring injury before. It won’t make the same mistake it made with Williamson last year.
Still, this team needs some hope, and Williamson provided it with his remarks on Tuesday. But what they need even more is him in uniform. Only time will tell if that wish will come true.
“As I continue to rehab with the team, the more I pass tests,” he said, “the quicker I’ll be able to return.”
(Photo: Cooper Neill/Getty Images)
