Zion Williamson suffers fresh injury blow by rolling his ankle in preseason game

Zion Williamson’s season has already started unfavorably as the hugely talented but injury-prone superstar suffered another injury against the Heat on Wednesday night.

Williamson rolled his ankle in the second quarter of the preseason game as he drove to the ring, and was later taken out of the game with ‘left ankle pain’.

Pelicans coach Willie Green, however, told reporters he didn’t expect the 22-year-old to miss an extended stint.

Williamson also noted after the game that he continued to play after the shock.

“It was one of those things where it happened and I popped up again, like, ‘Yeah, I’m straight,'” Williamson told reporters.

“Played a few minutes after that, it felt good. Then they sent me back to check. We wanted to look at it, a doctor had looked at it, and all he said was a little bit of daily pain.

‘And, but other than that I feel fine personally. Wasn’t bad news from the doctors.’

While it appears that the forward contusion has prevented serious injuries, the development is of course somewhat worrisome given Williamson’s injury history.

The New Orleans star missed the entire season last season to recover from a fractured fifth metatarsal in his right foot.

Williamson also missed a lot of time during his rookie season with a torn meniscus.

In fact, as he enters his fourth season, Williamson has played just 85 regular season games — barely more than one full season.

Nevertheless, the Pelicans think they will improve their record of 36-46 if he can stay relatively healthy.

Williamson will team up with Brandon Ingram and CJ McCollum to form a formidable core, while young players Jaxson Hayes and Herb Jones should also contribute.