The New Orleans Pelicans' big-picture hopes of sustained championship contention hinge most on Zion Williamson's health. Given the direct ties between injury woes and weight and conditioning issues early in his career, it comes as no surprise the Pelicans protected themselves while signing the 21-year-old wunderkind to a max-level extension.
Christian Clark of NOLA.com reported on Thursday that Williamson's new contract contains language that will reduce his pay if his combined weight and body fat percentage reaches a certain threshold.
According to league sources, Williamson’s contract stipulates that he will have weigh-ins periodically throughout the entirety of his new deal. The sum of his weight and body fat percentage must be below 295. If it is not, the amount of guaranteed money in Williamson’s contract can be reduced.
Williamson signed a five-year, $193 million extension with New Orleans in early July. If he wins MVP, Defensive Player of the Year or makes an All-NBA team next season, Williamson's contract will balloon to a total of $231 million, worth 30% of the cap in its starting salary rather than 25%.
Those extension escalators are common for the league's brightest young stars. New contracts afforded to Ja Morant and Darius Garland earlier this month feature the same stipulation, known colloquially as the “Derrick Rose rule” after the former Chicago Bulls star won MVP in 2011 while playing on his rookie deal.
More irregular as de-escalators in a player's contract, especially those specifically pertaining to weight and body fat. The assumption was that Williamson's max extension would include outs related to health, similar to Joel Embiid's from a few years ago. But considering the inherent link between longstanding conditioning issues and Williamson's early-career spate of injuries, these newly revealed details of his contract make perfect sense for the Pelicans.
Sparking more optimism is that Zion Williamson, rumored to be carrying at least 300 pounds last fall while recovering from a foot injury that cost him all of 2021-22, appears more committed to both New Orleans and conditioning than ever. Fingers crossed those weight-related de-escalators aren't triggered in his career going forward.
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