Zion Williamson told ESPN’s Malika Andrews that the criticism that cuts deepest is the suggestion he does not care about basketball. “The part that would get at me the most is people saying I didn’t care. I care a lot,” Williamson said. He is averaging 24.1 points and 6.5 rebounds per game this season for the 19-43 Pelicans and is on track to play in more than 50 games for only the third time in his career.
Williamson’s injury history has defined the public perception of his career more than his production on the court
Williamson played 24 games as a rookie because of a torn meniscus, missed the entire 2021-22 season, and spent part of his third year rehabbing a foot injury in Portland, away from the team. That stretch in Portland was the low point. He was dealing with weight scrutiny and questions about whether he wanted to play at all. “There was a lot of criticism on my weight, my care for the game,” Williamson said. The pattern of absences made it easy for critics to build a narrative, and the narrative stuck.
Williamson pushed back on that framing directly. “How much my critics hate it, I hate it more than them. I don’t want to be on the sideline. I want to be on the court,” he said. He also acknowledged the mental toll of repeated injuries, saying the time away affected him but ultimately forced him to mature. “Going through all those injuries and missing lots of time because of it, it did a lot on my mental, but it also helped me grow as a pro.”
New Orleans has not been able to build around Williamson’s production and the Pelicans sit at 19-43
Williamson’s individual numbers this season are strong. The 24.1 points per game are in line with what he has produced when healthy throughout his career. But the Pelicans’ record makes it difficult to evaluate how much his presence moves the needle for the franchise. New Orleans is one of the worst teams in the league, and Williamson’s availability — while improved this year — remains the central question for any long-term plan built around him.
He has played in more than 50 games only twice, and reaching that mark again this season would at least demonstrate sustained availability even if the wins have not followed. For Williamson, the interview with Andrews appeared to be an attempt to reframe the conversation around effort rather than results. Whether that lands depends largely on what happens next — both with his health and with a Pelicans team that has not been able to put enough around him to compete.