The never-ending injury saga of Zion Williamson took another strange twist on Thursday after the New Orleans Pelicans announced that the star forward received an injection to help the bone-healing process in his fractured right foot. The procedure will further delay Williamson's return to the NBA court with the league's former No. 1 pick set to be sidelined for the next four to six weeks.
Williamson's return pushed back once again
Williamson looked to be on his way to returning for New Orleans earlier this month when he ramped up his practices with the Pelicans. He was scheduled to participate in his first full practice with New Orleans but those plans were shut down after Williamson complained of soreness in his surgically repaired right foot.
Williamson traveled to Los Angeles earlier this week to talk to Dr. Richard Ferkel of Southern California Orthopedic Institute. Ferkel was part of the team of doctors who performed the initial surgery on Williamson's injured right foot. It looks like Ferkel found something wrong with Williamson's latest scans as he gave the NBA star a biologic injection to speed up the healing process.
The Pelicans released a medical update on their Twitter account, saying that the injection was administered directly into the site of the fracture to stimulate bone healing in Williamson's right foot. The injection came six days after the Pelicans announced that Williamson had experienced a regression in his right foot.
New Orleans head coach Willie Green talked to reporters after Thursday's practice, saying that the injury has been frustrating for everyone involved. Green said "It's been frustrating for him, his family. We're continuing to navigate adversity. We want to be encouraging and hopeful." Green added that the Pelicans just have to try and keep getting through it but he admits that the latest injury setback has been tough for Williamson and the entire organization.
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Williamson targets 2022 return
Further imaging on Williamson's injured foot will be done in the next month or so, meaning his return at the earliest will come in the year 2022. While he waits for his foot to heal, Williamson will be undergoing low-impact, partial weight-bearing activities.
Williamson fractured his right foot last summer while doing offseason training with his stepfather. He was performing basketball drills when the said incident occurred. The Pelicans sent shockwaves across the league when they revealed Williamson's injury on the opening day of training camp back in September.
The Pelicans were bullish regarding Williamson's recovery at that time, saying they expect him to play in their regular season opener on October 20. That has not transpired obviously with Williamson way behind schedule in his recovery. The Pelicans have struggled without their franchise player, losing 21 of their first 30 games this season.
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