New Orleans Pelicans vice president on Zion Williamson's return: 'When he’s ready, he’s going to play'

Mark Medina | USA TODAY

LOS ANGELES --- The Pelicans have heard the rumors surrounding Zion Williamson’s injury. So, New Orleans’ lead executive dismissed it as fast and strong as one of the dunks that the franchise’s star rookie will throw down.

“You see the narrative out there that we will intentionally shut him down. Or that they’re idiots for not shutting him down,” Pelicans executive vice president of basketball operations David Griffin told USA TODAY Sports. “Well, which is it? The reality is when he’s ready, he’s going to play.”

When will Williamson play?

The Pelicans lack clarity on that question. Williamson participated in his first practice on Thursday after tearing his right lateral meniscus before the team’s season opener. Prior to the Pelicans’ 123-113 loss to the Lakers on Friday at Staples Center, Williamson completed both a 3-on-3 non-contact scrimmage and pre-game warmup that entailed throwing down a handful of dunks. Griffin said he thought Williamson “looked tremendous” with his explosiveness.

Griffin added, though, that Williamson is “going to have to practice several more times” before the Pelicans clear him to play. The only problem? Griffin noted, “we don’t have the days to do it.” The Pelicans won’t practice on Sunday since they will have played back-to-back games against the Lakers and Sacramento (Saturday). Williamson is scheduled to practice on Jan 7, but the Pelicans then have a game against Chicago on Jan 8 followed by a three-game trip to New York (Jan 10), Boston (Jan 11) and Detroit (Jan 13). The Pelicans have mostly minimized practices to account for the Pelicans (11-23) missing a combined 105 games because of injuries. They also face logistical challenges sending Williamson down to their G-League affiliate because that team is based in Erie, Pa.

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Given those scenarios, it appears Williamson could return during the Pelicans’ home-stand against Utah (Jan. 16) and the Los Angeles Clippers (Jan. 18). That is because the Pelicans have three potential practice days that week. Then again, the Pelicans have declined to pin a timetable on Williamson’s return.

“I think he would be out there right now if it were up to him. But we have to protect him from himself sometimes,” Pelicans coach Alvin Gentry told USA TODAY Sports. “He’s going through everything he’s going to go through. When the time comes, we’ll play him. Obviously we’ll be overly cautious of that.”

The Pelicans initially ruled Williamson out for six to eight weeks, which left the possibility open that he could return in early or mid December. Though Williamson remains sidelined a month later, Griffin stressed that Williamson did not experience any setbacks with his surgically repaired right knee. Instead, the Pelicans’ medical staff took a cautious approach with Williamson after he also sprained his right knee during his freshman season at Duke and bruised his left knee during summer league play.

Griffin said the Pelicans are not concerned about Williamson needing to lose weight from his listed 6-foot-6, 284-pound frame. Instead, the Pelicans’ training staff has worked with Williamson to improve his range of motion with both his feet and hips in hopes that he becomes less susceptible to future injuries.

“He’s been fine. We went way slower than we would’ve with a 28-year-old veteran who had a really efficient movement pattern,” Griffin said. “So we thought we’d address it. My job is not to get him on the court fast. It’s to keep him on the court.”

That does not mean, however, that the Pelicans have considered shutting Williamson down for all of his rookie season. After Williamson averaged 23.3 points and shooting 71.4% from the field in pre-season play, the Pelicans hope they can play their No. 1 pick with a young roster that also features fourth-year forward Brandon Ingram, third-year guard Lonzo Ball as well as veterans Derrick Favors, Jrue Holiday and J.J. Redick. The Pelicans (11-24) are still only four games behind for the eighth and final playoff spot.

“There’s no value in having a healthy player not play,” Griffin said. “I don’t see value in what a lot of tanking teams are doing with sitting healthy players. You’re teaching guys that losing is an acceptable outcome. That’s not what we want our young players to learn. We’re trying to build a culture from the ground up here. Healthy players play. They sacrifice for each other. In this case, we haven’t wanted him to go because we didn’t feel like he could stay healthy. When he can stay healthy, he’s going to play.”

When that will happen remains unclear. But it appears imminent.

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