Zion Williamson: Pelicans Decided 'It's Not Smart' for Me to Play Back-to-Backs

New Orleans Pelicans star Zion Williamson revealed that the team is keeping him from playing in back-to-back games this season.

"Let me make this clear to everybody out there," Williamson said on Thursday, per The Athletic's Will Guillory. "If I could play in the back-to-backs, I would. Physically? Yes, I can. But I work for the Pelicans. They have decided that, based off the numbers, it's not smart to do that right now. If that's what they feel, I'm rocking with them on that."

The two-time All-Star has appeared in just 13 contests to open his 2024-25 campaign, missing 27 straight games from Nov. 8 through Jan. 5 due to a hamstring injury.

Williamson has played in one set of back-to-back games this season, which occurred in a pair of contests against the Golden State Warriors on Oct. 29 and Oct. 30.

Despite dropping 31 points and shooting 63.2 percent from the field in the first matchup, he struggled mightily in the second. In the latter clash with Golden State, Williamson finished with 12 points on 5-20 shooting and missed five of his seven free-throw attempts. He also turned the ball over four times compared to just four assists.

The Pelicans lost both games.

While it may seem harsh for one poor performance during the second half of a back-to-back to prevent Williamson from playing on consecutive days moving forward, it's also clear to see why New Orleans wants to be careful with availability.

The No. 1 overall pick in the 2019 NBA draft has been a dominant offensive force when healthy, but he's been plagued by injuries throughout the start of his career. He was limited to 24 starts due to a torn meniscus in his rookie season, and he missed his entire 2021-22 campaign with a right foot fracture. A right hamstring strain also held Williamson to 29 games in 2023.

The 24-year-old is also currently on a minutes restriction, via Brett Martel of the Associated Press. He hasn't played more than 30 minutes in a game since his Jan. 7 return.

With the Pelicans currently sitting at 12-36, it's clear that they want to preserve Williamson's long-term health by keeping him out of back-to-back games.