On October 4, on the occasion of the Pelicans’ first preseason game once morest the Bulls, it will be precisely 17 months since Zion Williamson has not taken part in an NBA game.
Absent during the entirety of last season due to a broken right foot, it is an understatement to say that the nugget from New Orleans approaches the exercise with a lot of desire. Especially since he says he is completely recovered.
“I feel like I’m at my best right now. I feel that I move faster, that I jump higher. I feel good “, did he declare lors du Media Day. “I’m coming out of a long period without playing a game, but my level of excitement is at its peak. I’m just ready to get back on the pitch.”
Focused on details
In addition to big workouts since finishing rehab in Florida, Zion Williamson has tried to stack the odds in his favor by hiring a personal trainer and chef, on the advice of veterans like CJ McCollum, Larry Nance Jr, or Garrett Temple.
These little details that make the difference, and whose impact the interested party would already feel in training.
« It’s one of those feelings when I’m in the gym, where something’s going on and I’m like, ‘Oh man, can I really do this? Oh, that’s different. But I learned a lot from a nutrition perspective, training, how much time I should spend in the gym, and the most efficient way to train. ».
A collective to rediscover
The hard part starts now since Zion Williamson will now have to integrate into a team that worked very well without him in the second part of last season. In addition, the group has moved quite a bit. From his last game, only Brandon Ingram, Jaxson Hayes, Kira Lewis, Willy Hernangomez and Naji Marshall remain.
“I think it’s going to be very easy for me to fit in with my teammates because they’re playing the right way. Nobody is selfish. Everyone wants to see others succeed”he pointed out. “Now there are things we are going to have to learn. I’m going to have to learn to play with CJ McCollum and Brandon Ingram on the court, learn to play with Jose (Alvarado), Trey (Murphy), Herb (Jones), because I haven’t played with those guys yet. But watching the video I think it will be easy.
The puzzle also begins for his (new) coach, Willie Green, who wants to take advantage of the pre-season to test as many combinations as possible, and extract what works best.
“I look at certain things that work, then I am in constant discussion with him and the staff to find what works best”, confided the coach. “If it works, we’ll try to get it added. If not, we move on. But there will be progress with Zion, already with regard to the period during which he was absent. We won’t see the Zion we’re used to seeing right away.”
With a Zion Williamson well integrated into an already solid collective, New Orleans has enough to do damage next season. As everywhere at the time of the recovery, the enthusiasm is there.
“This group is unique. The training camp will be my first intense collective experience with them. So I feel like I’m going to know a lot more following that, but on paper and from what I’ve seen from the sidelines last year, we really have a special group.” concluded Zion Williamson.