Stephen A. Smith calls out Zion Williamson over the Pelicans star’s lengthy injury record

ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith has questioned New Orleans Pelicans star Zion Williamson over his return from injury, by saying the player’s injury record is ‘raising suspicions everywhere.’

The 22-year-old has been sidelined since January 2 and wasn’t able to return in time for the Pelicans’ play-in game Wednesday.

The 2019 No. 1 overall NBA draft pick recently said that physically he felt fine but it was ‘a matter of when I feel like Zion.’

The comment raised eyebrows with Smith claiming the prolonged return was beginning to look bad.  

‘Let me say this about Zion Williamson, and I really, really, really hope that he’s listening,’ Smith said on ESPN’s ‘First Take.’

Stephan A. Smith recently said Zion Williamson’s injuries are ‘raising suspicions everywhere’

Williamson has been sitting out with a strained right hamstring he suffered in early January

‘This guy is a fantastic talent, very much needed, if he were in the lineup we would be speaking significantly more about New Orleans and what kind of noise they could make in the Western Conference.’ 

‘He’s missed 169 games in his [four-year] career and hasn’t played in at least 40 percent of his games,’ Smith continued.’  You can’t make a statement like, ‘Oh, when I feel like Zion.’ ‘Players taught us a long time ago, “We never feel like we’re 100 percent. Sometimes we never feel like our fresh, completely healthy selves.”

‘He’s got to get it together and he’s gotta find a way to get back on the court. Period. Because it’s starting to look very bad and it’s raising suspicions everywhere.’

Williamson recently voiced his frustrations about his recovery from a hamstring strain that has kept him out of action since January 2nd when he said: ‘I mean, this s*** sucks. I don’t know how else to say it. It just sucks. I love this game. I say it over and over.’

‘For those people that think that I just want to sit on the sideline just to sit over there, I don’t know why people think that, but nah, it sucks. I want to be playing basketball for real.

‘Physically I’m fine, now it’s just a matter of when I feel like Zion.

‘I know the atmosphere I’d be entering based off like the playoff experience. So now it’s just a matter of when I feel like Zion.’

Before being hurt he was averaging 26.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 4.6 assists per game, on 60.8 percent shooting from the field and was named an All-Star starter despite the injury.

He had been on track to return long before the postseason but suffered a setback while rehabbing that severely delayed his eventual comeback.

Despite missing an extended period of time Williamson was still voted an All-Star starter

‘It’s a little bit of a mental battle, because you know when I reaggravated [the injury] back in February, it was tough,’ Williamson said.

‘So when I go to make certain moves, there is that hesitation. Sometimes there’s not and sometimes there is.

‘And I understand the magnitude of these games coming up and I don’t want to be out there hesitating or doing something that may affect my team in a bad way.’ 

Williamson’s Pelicans ended up being eliminated from the Play-In Tournament by the Oklahoma City Thunder.