How will Zion Williamson's latest foot injury impact the New Orleans Pelicans at the start of the 2021-22 NBA season?

Zion Williamson broke the fifth metatarsal in his right foot over the summer, an injury that can take between six to 10 weeks to heal. An injury to your star player in the off-season that follows his first All-Star appearance, an off-season where development was a core aspect of your team's road map. Things don't seem to ever work out the way the New Orleans Pelicans want them to.

Zion Williamson is unquestionably the New Orleans Pelicans' best offensive player and arguably their best distributor too. Missing an off-season of development, where Zion Williamson could have begun to diversify his game further, will be a setback in the front office's plans for the upcoming year.

To make matters worse, the noise coming out of Zion Williamson's camp has indicated that he's becoming disillusioned with the team and their commitment to building a championship-caliber team.

So where do Zion Williamson and the New Orleans Pelicans go from here? Is their star player going to be on a minute restriction to begin the season? If so, are they going to use him in "bursts" as they have done previously? In his article for The Ringer, Dan Devine mentions how Zion Williamson was never a fan of the "burst" strategy:

Williamson “detested” the burst plan during his rookie season, according to Christian Clark of The Times-Picayune | New Orleans Advocate, and “the way [his] return was handled caused significant tension between him and the team’s medical staff.”

One of Zion Williamson's key attributes is his second jump, which is the ability to jump straight after landing. Any pain in the foot will limit this type of athletic movement and dampen Zion Williamson's effectiveness around the rim as a result. Furthermore, if there's any pain in the affected area, can we truly rely on Zion Williamson to attack the rim at full pelt as he's become synonymous with doing since entering the league?

David Griffin and his front office team have spent the off-season building their roster around the unique talent of Zion Williamson while also ensuring that the new players also accentuate the scoring abilities of Brandon Ingram. In the short term, the team will likely turn to Ingram and newcomer Devonte' Graham to shoulder the scoring burden while Zion Williamson gets up to game speed.

Boasting a "bull in a china shop" brand of basketball, Zion Williamson will need to monitor his pain levels and listen to his body as he bids to avoid a relapse on the injury once back on the floor. Yet the New Orleans Pelicans don't possess another power forward capable of filling the void while Zion Williamson recovers or spends large segments of games glued to the bench.

Most of Griffin's wheeling and dealings this summer have revolved around the guard rotation. Outside of Jonas Valanciunas' arrival, the forward and big-man spots have largely remained the same. Willie Green may have to get creative in his rotations to begin the season.

Perhaps a starting five like this could work:

Point Guard - Devonte' Graham | Shooting Guard - Tomas Satoransky | Small Forward - Josh Hart | Power Forward - Brandon Ingram | Center - Jonas Valanciunas

Defense could be an issue with the above rotation, or any iteration that is similar to the one outlined. Perhaps Zion Williamson will be healthy to start the season, as many during New Orleans Pelicans media day alluded to, but going from the treatment room straight to an NBA court has its pitfalls, and re-aggrevating a foot injury is likely one of them.

Another area of concern regarding Zion Williamson's foot injury for New Orleans Pelicans fans will undoubtedly be his ability to both stay healthy and in shape. There's been many rumblings about Zion Williamson's body type and its supposed durability since the forward entered the NBA. Now, with another injury added to an already growing list, those concerned will again become a vocal minority.

Zion Williamson's body type doesn't fit what you would expect of an NBA player, however, it's a large part of what makes him so effective on the court. Asking Zion Williamson to alter his physique is both fair and counter-intuitive, and that's like asking a Power Ranger not to use the MegaZord, it's good for the city of Angel Grove but terrible for the Ranger's chances of success.

As the new season gets underway next month, we will start to find answers to both "How will the New Orleans Pelicans deal with ramping Zion Williamson up to game speed" and "Can Zion Williamson stay healthy this year", but for now, all we can do is trust that both the player and the medical staff are on the same page and progressing towards a fully healthy return sooner than later.

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