The New Orleans Pelicans have had a very rocky start to their season due to inconsistent play and , most importantly, injuries. Most of the constant rotation players for the Pelicans have been in and out of the lineup so far this season, and New Orleans finds itself down at the bottom of the Western Conference Standings as a result.
One of the biggest injuries that the Pelicans have suffered is to Zion Williamson. The star forward strained his hamstring and has been out since Nov. 6. Originally, he was supposed to return after four-to-six weeks, but Shams Charania reported on Friday that Williamson isn’t close to returning and could be out for an extended period of time.
In the midst of Williamson’s recovery, he has made a major change in his representation. The former Duke superstar is splitting with the Creative Arts Agency (CAA) have parted ways, according to Joe Vardon of The Athletic.
The move comes with Williamson in a peculiar spot in his career. He has been plagued by injuries throughout his time with the Pelicans and this season obviously has been no different. At the end of this season, the Pelicans can choose to cut ties with Williamson with no financial penalty due to health clauses in his contract.
Williamson played well in six games this season before going down with his injury, scoring nearly 23 points per game to go along with eight rebounds and 5.3 assists. However, he has had an inconsistent season shooting this year, failing to crack 50% from the floor.
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The Pelicans need Williamson’s dominance on the interior as they try to navigate a smaller rotation that leaves them undermanned on the interior against some of the Western Conference’s bigger teams.
Rookie center Yves Missi has played well this season and longtime veteran Daniel Theis has been a minuet-eater for them, but none provide the same scoring punch on offense that Williamson does. The Pelicans will be hoping that Williamson can make it back sooner rather than later to get the team back into playoff contention.
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