Pelicans Suspend Zion Williamson For Violating Team Rules

01/10/2025 05:34 PM

In the years since Zion Williamson created new hope for New Orleans basketball when he became the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA Draft, injuries and a slew of wild incidents have limited him to just 191 games.

Unfortunately, the relationship between Zion and the rest of the team seems to be doing about as well as his physical health. 

According to ESPN NBA insider Shams Charania, the team has suspended Zion for one game for a "violation of team policies."

"The New Orleans Pelicans have suspended Zion Williamson for one game for a violation of team policies," Charania wrote.

In a follow-up report, Charania explained that Zion was late for the team's flight to Philadelphia on Thursday ahead of their game against the 76ers tonight.

Zion Williamson was late for Thursday's team flight to Philadelphia, leading the Pelicans to suspend him for tonight's game against the 76ers, sources said. https://t.co/sI5YHaouLr

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) January 10, 2025

The 2023-24 season saw Zion Williamson enjoy one of his best seasons from a health standpoint as he played in a career-high 70 games. He averaged 22.9 points, 5.8 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game that year, but missed out on the All-Star Game.

Unfortunately, Zion's health woes resumed fairly early in the 2024-25 season. 

He's played in just seven games since season and missed nearly all of November and December. Tonight's game would have been just his second game in the last 60 days.

NBA fans are getting extremely tired of Zion's persistent unavailability, particularly as he continues to pine for a long-term extension with the team.

"What an embarrassing clown Zion has become…. I'm so (expletive) happy he didn't end up on the Knicks like I originally wanted," one user wrote on X.

"He's a thoroughly unserious player at this point. NOP should be listening to offers for him ain't no way they aren't tired of this (expletive)," wrote another.

"Has there been a bigger disappointment in the #NBA over the past 5 years than Zion Williamson?" a third remarked.

Through the seven games he has played, he's been averaging 22.6 points, a career-high 7.7 rebounds and a career-high 5.1 assists per game.

Is Zion on the outs with the organization, or is this just a minor issue with the team?

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