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The New Orleans Pelicans’ difficult start took another damaging turn Tuesday when star forward Zion Williamson was diagnosed with a right adductor injury that will sideline him for at least three weeks, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania.
Williamson, who has averaged 22.1 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 4.0 assists in 10 games this season, had only recently returned to action. He came back on Nov. 19 after missing just over two weeks with a Grade 1 left hamstring strain, appearing in five of the Pelicans’ past seven games before sustaining the adductor injury — an ailment expected to keep him out for a significantly longer stretch.
The setback deepens an already grim outlook for a Pelicans team sitting at the bottom of the Western Conference at 3–18 and dealing with one of the NBA’s longest injury lists. Since being drafted No. 1 overall in 2019, injuries have shadowed nearly every phase of Williamson’s career, and this latest one lands at a moment when New Orleans’ season is already sinking.
Zion Williamson 11th grade mixtape is one of those you gotta see it to believe it type of videos 😲😲 He was ONLY 16 pic.twitter.com/XkgQo2LOK9
— Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) November 29, 2018
Pelicans Already Short-Handed Before the Latest Setback
Before Williamson’s diagnosis, New Orleans had been leaning heavily on its depth out of necessity. Seven Pelicans missed Sunday’s loss to the Lakers, including four starters, as the team continues to cycle through injuries to Trey Murphy III (elbow), Herb Jones (calf), Jordan Poole (quad), Jordan Hawkins (illness), Karlo Matković (calf), and Dejounte Murray (Achilles).
Interim head coach James Borrego addressed the reality of competing shorthanded after Los Angeles opened with a 46-point first quarter and ultimately prevailed, 133–121.
In describing how his group responded after falling behind early, Borrego said the Pelicans showed something he wants to see more of.
“I loved the resiliency, the toughness,” Borrego said. “Basically tied the second quarter, won the third, won the fourth, kept battling, never gave in. … I like our response after the first quarter. It’s the response I’m most focused on.”
Despite the loss, Bryce McGowens produced a career-best 23 points, Saddiq Bey posted 22 points and 11 rebounds, and Jeremiah Fears added 21. But the larger cloud was Williamson’s sudden shift from a manageable hamstring issue to facing another multi-week absence.
A Season Tilting Toward Trouble — And a Costly Draft Reality
The Pelicans’ slide has been steep. Twelve losses in their past 13 games have dropped them to a league-worst 3–18. On 2025 draft night, New Orleans sent Atlanta the No. 23 pick in the 2025 draft and its unprotected 2026 first-round pick, a selection sometimes noted on cap sheets as “more favorable of NOP and MIL” but functionally giving the Hawks control of the Pelicans’ 2026 slot. That record currently positions them for the best odds at the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft.
That context intensifies the impact of Williamson’s absence. The Pelicans cannot meaningfully benefit from a lost season, and with their star sidelined for at least three weeks — and likely more, given the nature of adductor strains — their chances of stabilizing diminish further.
Borrego, whose rotation has been stretched thin, emphasized the mindset required to navigate the current storm.
“I think ultimately we’re just leaning into our character,” he said. “You have a choice. This is a choice right now. You could give in and choose not to fight, not to compete, say, ‘woe is us’. Or you have a choice to go out there and compete and fight.”
The fight is there — the depth is not. Luka Dončić torched New Orleans on Sunday with 34 points, including 20 in the first quarter, as the Pelicans quickly fell behind by double digits. Without Williamson and Trey Murphy III, New Orleans struggled to generate enough scoring to match the pace.
Williamson’s re-evaluation timeline pushes his earliest possible return into late December, but the Pelicans’ hole may be too deep by then. And with their 2026 pick heading to Atlanta, the franchise cannot simply fall back on lottery hope.
A look at Zion Williamson’s injury/illness history since being drafted by the Pelicans, per @FOXSports:
Date Injury/illness12-25 Hip11-25 Hamstring10-25 Foot3-25 Back1-25 Illness1-25 Hamstring11-24 Hamstring10-24 Illness4-24 Hamstring4-24 Finger2-24…
— Jeff Duncan (@JeffDuncan_) December 2, 2025
A Familiar, Costly Pattern
The Pelicans entered the season with hopes of stability — a healthy Williamson, a revamped roster, and optimism around new leadership. Instead, the franchise finds itself stuck in the same repeating cycle: flashes of promise derailed by mounting injuries and unanswered questions about the future.
Williamson’s talent remains unquestioned. His availability, once again, does not. And as the absences accumulate, so do the broader implications. Any theoretical pivot — including the possibility of eventually exploring Williamson’s trade value — becomes increasingly complicated. Leaguewide interest in a former No. 1 pick with All-NBA upside would normally be significant, but repeated injuries, long-term durability concerns, and a sizable contract make it difficult to envision a robust market forming right now.
With New Orleans already sliding and another extended absence looming, this may be the injury that pushes the season past the point of recovery — and leaves the Pelicans with fewer clear paths forward than ever.
