Getty Zion Williamson #1 of the New Orleans Pelicans walks on the court during a game against the New York Knicks during the 2019 NBA Summer League at the Thomas & Mack Center on July 5, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Zion Williamson will miss the rest of the NBA Summer League with a bruised left knee, reports The Athletic’s Shams Charania. The Pelicans’ No. 1 draft pick scored 11 points on 4-of-9 shooting and grabbed three rebounds in an 80-74 victory over the New York Knicks Friday night.
ESPN’s Cassidy Hubarth reported that Williamson took a hit to the knee in the first half, which caused the former Duke Blue Devil to exit.
“It’s not expected to be serious but the Pelicans are taking a cautious approach with their #1 pick during this summer league,” she tweeted.
As NBA Retweet first pointed out, Williamson showed a slight limp out of the locker room and did not start the second half. This is the second injury of the year for Williamson, who popped out of his shoe in the first matchup between Duke and rival North Carolina back in the winter.
He eventually returned against Syracuse in the ACC Tournament. He dominated in the NCAA Tournament, averaging 26 points (on 61 percent shooting from inside the arc) and 8.6 rebounds. His highlight was a 32-point outburst against UCF to keep Duke alive and advance to the Sweet 16.
Williamson is expected back for the Pelicans well before the NBA Preseason starts in October.
Zion Williamson’s Strong First Half in Summer League Opener
Zion showing off his strength EARLY 😳💪
Before exiting, Williamson performed very well. One of the more viral moments of the night came when he ripped the ball from Knicks forward Kevin Knox and proceeded to throw down a huge dunk, as NBA TV showed.
Our own Jeff Smith pointed out that Williamson’s summer league debut led to a packed house in Las Vegas.
Paired with the fact that it came in the form of a matchup with former Duke teammate RJ Barrett, (the game) led to a packed house in Las Vegas. As Ben Golliver reported, all 17,500 seats were sold out and revealed that lower-level tickets were re-selling for more than $400. Golliver also pointed out that a record 1,000 media credentials were issued.
Updated New Orleans Pelicans Summer League Roster & Lineup
*Note: All roster information courtesy of NBA.com.
- Jalen Adams, guard
- Javon Bess, guard/forward
- Trevon Bluiett, guard
- Tony Carr, guard
- Zylan Cheatham, forward
- Aubrey Dawkins, guard
- Makoto Hiejima, guard
- Frank Jackson, guard
- London Perrantes, guard
- Luke Petrasek, forward
- Kenrich Williams, forward
- Christian Wood, center