Former NBA Superstar Urges Caution About Pelicans' Zion Williamson

A former NBA superstar has urged caution about New Orleans Pelicans star Zion Williamson's weight loss.

Jan 10, 2024; San Francisco, California, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Zion Williamson (1) dribbles past Golden State Warriors guard Moses Moody (4) in the third quarter at the Chase Center. / Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports

Zion Williamson is entering a pivotal season with the New Orleans Pelicans.

Throughout his first four NBA seasons, he has been unable to live up to the hype that came with him into the league.

He has dealt with numerous injury issues that have completely derailed the start of his career.

Last season, he played in 70 regular season games. That was a career-high for him. Unfortunately, he suffered an injury during the Pelicans' play-in game and missed their playoff series.

With the 2024-25 NBA season coming up quickly, Williamson looks to be in amazing shape. He has dropped weight and looks healthier than he has been at any point with New Orleans.

That has brought a lot of excitement and hype among the Pelicans' fan base. However, one former NBA superstar has urged caution when it comes to Williamson and his weight loss.

During an appearance on his "7 PM in Brooklyn" podcast, Carmelo Anthony spoke out and expressed one reason for caution when it comes to the transformation.

"He looked like he was in the best shape of his life. But it's like, it's not getting in shape, it's remaining in shape. It's remaining fit. Now you going to get there but are you going to keep that going? Are you going to do what you got to do to keep that, you know, being locked in? How are you going to do that? It's a long season, and you really got to put the work in to remain that way. There are no days off."

Anthony makes a very good point. Dropping the weight is a great first step, but Williamson has to remain committed to keeping the weight off. There can be no lapses in the process that he has undergone to lose the weight.

Perhaps Williamson truly is frustrated with what he has done in the NBA thus far and wants to fix the issues. That is a very possible reason and that motivation would help him stay committed to staying in shape.

Of course, that's the hope that New Orleans has as well. Williamson is still their franchise cornerstone and they need him healthy and on the court playing at a high level.

It will be interesting to see how the upcoming NBA season unfolds for Williamson and the Pelicans.

Hopefully, the 24-year-old star is truly turning a corner.