The New Orleans Pelicans are currently in the middle of a two-month-long rut that has sent them tumbling all the way from the upper echelon of the Western Conference and out of the playoff picture entirely. After losing Zion Williamson to a hamstring strain on January 3, the Pelicans have won just eight of their past 28 games. As confident as head coach Willie Green might be in the face of adversity, the Pelicans' season, inexplicably, may only get worse from here.

According to Brian Windhorst of ESPN, Williamson is “not close” to a return from his hamstring injury and that the setback he suffered in mid-February “was significant” enough to delay his recovery even further.

Zion Williamson's history of lower-body injuries does not bode well for both his and the Pelicans' futures. Williamson notably missed the first three months of his rookie season with a knee injury, playing in just 24 games during the 2019-20 season.

While the 6'6 highflying forward out of Duke mostly stayed healthy during the 2020-21 season, playing in 61 of the Pelicans' 72 games, he then proceeded to miss the entirety of the 2021-22 season due to a major foot injury. This saga even prompted a few questions regarding the correlation between Williamson's weight and his susceptibility to injuries.

Amid his major injuries, Zion Williamson has also suffered a few ankle problems here and there. And now, it's his hamstring that's giving him considerable problems as the Pelicans' tailspin continues.

When healthy, there's no questioning Williamson's talent. A masterful blend of strength, agility, vertical, and soft touch, Williamson blends finesse and brute force with ease en route to scoring 25.8 points per game for his career. However, as the old adage goes, availability is the best ability, and Williamson cannot provide that with consistency at the moment given his injury woes.

Zion Williamson has played in just 114 out of a possible 291 games in his career, suiting up in just 39 percent of his team's games.

As a result, the Pelicans will have to weather the storm without their talisman for the foreseeable future, similar to what they did during the 2021-22 season. Brandon Ingram and CJ McCollum will have to step up, big time.