Pelicans’ Zion Williamson to miss at least 3 weeks with right hip adductor strain: Source

New Orleans Pelicans star Zion Williamson has been diagnosed with a grade 2 right hip adductor strain, the team announced Tuesday, bringing his injury issues to the forefront again.

Williamson is expected to be sidelined for at least three weeks, a team source confirmed to The Athletic.

Williamson’s injury comes as the Pelicans have already gotten off to an ugly 3-18 start to begin the season, and concerns continue to grow about Williamson’s ability to stay on the court.

The Pelicans star missed eight games earlier this season while recovering from a left hamstring strain, and now he’ll be sidelined for another extended stretch as his team remains at the bottom of the Western Conference standings.

Williamson has only played in 10 of the Pelicans’ 21 games this season, and his repeated absences have fueled frustrations around a franchise that came into the season with hopes of being much more competitive in the West. Williamson is averaging 22.1 points, 5.6 rebounds and four assists this season.

Williamson’s inability to stay healthy and the Pelicans’ rotten start have become an even bigger point of contention in New Orleans after the franchise shipped away its unprotected 2026 first-round pick to the Atlanta Hawks in a draft-day deal last summer to acquire rookie big man Derik Queen.

While Queen has displayed flashes of brilliance during the start of his career, all signs point to the Pelicans giving up a premium pick in a highly-regarded 2026 draft, partially due to the face of the franchise’s repeated injury problems.

Williamson arrived in New Orleans as one of the most hyped prospects of his generation before the Pelicans chose him with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2019 draft. During the times he’s been on the court, Williamson has been one of the most dominant offensive weapons in the league, but his constant injuries have overshadowed his obvious talent.

Through the first seven seasons of his career, Williamson has played in only 224 of 493 Pelicans regular-season games and the number of missed games will continue to grow as he recovers from his latest injury.