Is Zion Williamson ready to finally lead the New Orleans Pelicans to the promised land?
He certainly got in the right shape to try with this make-or-break season in the Bayou ready to get going.
Williamson, the first-overall pick in the 2019, was seen as a can’t-miss superstar prospect coming out of Duke, but instead has been dogged by injury issues and critiques of his physique during his six seasons with the team.
But that looks like it’s about to change in a big way.
The two-time all-star turned heads when he showed up to the NBA team’s media day earlier this week, with a shockingly slimmed-down, well-defined frame.
Williamson said that while he noticably looks in better shape, he feels great too.
“I really felt a shift in my body,” Williamson told reporters on Tuesday. “I haven’t felt like this since college, high school, just where I can walk into a gym and I feel good.
After dealing with a severe hamstring injury through the 2024-25 season which limited him to just 30 games, Williamson entered into an intense off-season training program, led by trainer Daniel Bove.
The program – which consisted of boxing workouts and drills on a football field — was designed to help Williamson avoid his consistent issues with weight and injuries.
“Whatever my team needs, that’s what I’ll do,” the 25-year-old forward said.
Once photos of the new-look Zion hit social media hoops fans were blown away by his transformation.
Bill Simmons, head of the Ringer, was immediately back in on the big man, posting: “Zion won me back in like 14 seconds. I’m back!!!”
“I saw this on NBA Centel and thought it was fake,” another user wrote, referencing a popular parody account.
“Ozempic Zion about to be a problem,” a third user commented.
One person who wasn’t impressed was former NBA player Jeff Teague, who calling out Williamson for finally getting into great shape in a contract year.
“This is probably the dumbest press conference I’ve heard in my life,” Teague said. “All of this is because of you. You choose to eat, be out of shape, all that. Now, all of a sudden, it’s a contract year or looking for an extension. All of a sudden, he’s in shape, and he said they believe in me.
“Fool, they gave you a max deal. They’ve been believing in you. They had to put a lot of options in his contract because you didn’t believe in you. That’s dumb as hell, that press conference he’s doing.”
When he has been on the court, Williamson has been fantastic throughout his career. He has averaged 24.7 points and 6.6 rebounds per game, as well as 4.3 assists. However, he has yet to play more than 70 games in a season and has topped 30 games just twice. He also missed the entire 2021-22 season due to injury.