The start of training camp is nearly upon us, with media day having come and gone for a New Orleans Pelicans team that will be traveling to Australia to start their preseason journey. The Pelicans will be raring to redeem themselves from a 21-win 2024-25 season, and they continue to believe that Zion Williamson is the right guy to lead the franchise after rebuffing trade overtures for him this offseason despite bringing in a new front office regime.
Williamson's talent is undeniable, as he can be a freight train or wrecking ball that cannot be stopped going to the basket. His playmaking has also improved by leaps and bounds. But the Pelicans star's Achilles heel, from the get-go, has been health; he played in just 30 games last year and has a penchant for picking up serious injuries that keep him out for extended periods of time.
But the start of training camp is when optimism, even for teams that had as dreadful of a 2024-25 campaign as the Pelicans did, reigns supreme, and Williamson's revelation in his media day interview suggests that he could be in for a big season.
“We came up with a plan. From boxing to working out on the football field a lot. It's just different, random workouts. And during that time frame last year, I really felt the shift in my body to where I was looking [at myself] and going, ‘Yo this feels good. This feels good.' I haven't felt like this since college, high school just where I can walk in the gym and I'm like, ‘I feel good,'” Williamson said, via the official Pelicans account on X (formerly Twitter).
"I haven't felt like this since college, high school just where I can walk in the gym and I feel good."
Pelicans star Zion Williamson on his health entering this season 👀
(via @PelicansNBA)pic.twitter.com/OV2mGLdgXL
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) September 23, 2025
As long as Williamson remains healthy, which is a major if, then the Pelicans have a shot to compete for a postseason spot.
Can Zion Williamson have a healthy season for the Pelicans?
Year-in, year-out, it seems like the injury bug finds a way to haunt Williamson and the Pelicans. Even in his healthiest season (2023-24) where he played in 70 regular season games, he suffered an injury in the play-in tournament against the Los Angeles Lakers. This kept him out for the entirety of their first-round matchup against the Oklahoma City Thunder, where they were swept.
Last year, the Pelicans stood no chance. Newly-acquired Dejounte Murray suffered a torn Achilles, Brandon Ingram didn't play for so long until he was traded while dealing with an ankle injury, and Williamson's hamstring didn't let him suit up for more than 30 games. Is this the season where Williamson finally figures it out from a health standpoint?
