21-year-old Zion Williamson has not played a single game for the Pelicans this season. On the team’s media day, it was revealed that the young star underwent surgery to repair a fractured right foot during the offseason.
According to the fans, however, there’s a deeper reason to worry about Zion and it has to do with his weight.
Whispers around the association have hinted that Zion may be having trouble keeping his weight down, and recent sightings of Williamson have only perpetuated that narrative.
On Sunday, Zion was again spotted in the public eye and he didn’t exactly look great.
Whether it was the angle of the camera or real evidence of Zion’s weight issues, the guy looked pretty big and NBA Twitter had an absolute field day with the most recent photo (that has since gone viral).
https://twitter.com/TheNBACentral/status/1467709739031273481
I refuse to believe this is Zion. Holy eff. https://t.co/x6y0FpC9Jp
— Dominique Clare (@DomClare) December 6, 2021
I feel bad for the kid at this point
— . (@Herrojuku) December 6, 2021
https://twitter.com/Crossoverantho/status/1467711154730450946https://twitter.com/basicallyicam/status/1467712793235316736https://twitter.com/Porouslol/status/1467710895593766917
@gus_lyon3 Louisiana food doing him no good
— Anas (@anashahjahan) December 6, 2021
Yeah he’s cooked https://t.co/NH1wuuokUJ
— Eric (@PointGods) December 6, 2021
— Bay Area Brett (@Bay_Area_Brett) December 6, 2021
Dude built like a linebacker ☠️
— Chef curry (Parody) (@baby_face_goat) December 6, 2021
Ain’t no fuckibg way boi pic.twitter.com/3DgVpQkZEP
— 🇨🇩Sports Guy🇨🇩 (@PlamsAbt) December 6, 2021
https://twitter.com/cxndlxmxn/status/1467710883967082498https://twitter.com/jerezkrd/status/1467715038983204866
Mans big as shit but he probably can still ball
— Ac (@kidfromindy) December 6, 2021
Overweight
— Nolimit (kyrie fan!) 2022 champs yb fan💚 (@_nolimit420) December 6, 2021
https://twitter.com/WillieGaySZN/status/1467714759248125955
Bro is one cheese burger away
— Scottie Barnes Enjoyer (@raptorscham) December 6, 2021
To be fair to Zion, it looks like he’s wearing sweats in that picture which tends to be pretty baggy on anyone. There’s a good chance he’s not actually as big as he looks in the picture.
Regardless, it speaks to where Zion’s career is currently at. Just years ago, he was among the best and most exciting young players in the league and began drawing comparisons to Charles Barkley and even LeBron James. Of course, he was given the keys to the Pelicans franchise upon his arrival.
But now, he has kind of faded into obscurity, with injuries and rumors about his health taking over his career.
For now, Zion’s return remains a mystery and so, too, is the question of what kind of shape he’s really in at this moment in time.
But if the Pelicans are ever going to make the leap into contention, they’re going to need Zion at full strength and nothing less. Hopefully, the guy comes back and puts all the rumors to bed once and for all.
