New Orleans Pelicans: Zion Williamson’s load management dilemma

The New Orleans Pelicans are walking a tightrope thinking about how to manage Zion Williamson’s playing time in 2021

One of the biggest stories during training camp for the New Orleans Pelicans is the health of Zion Williamson. After being plagued by a meniscus tear during his rookie season, Williamson says that he finally feels as healthy as he was during his days at Duke University.

As if hearing those words for Williamson himself wasn’t exciting enough, head coach Stan Van Gundy then followed up by saying that Zion won’t be playing under a minutes restriction in 2021.

Unfortunately, my emphatic feelings were short-lived as I came to a realization that might anger some Pelicans fans. That realization being that even though Williamson is healthy right now, that doesn’t mean the organization will stop managing him during his career.

Just think about it, Zion Williamson is 6’6″ and 284 pounds with a BMI of 32. Contrary to some ignorant beliefs, that doesn’t mean that Williamson is obese, he’s not. Zion Williamson is in great condition, but his physical profile is unique. That why the Pelicans organization wants to manage him. The NBA has never seen a player with a body like that who move in the ways that Williamson can, and some educated critics believe that a physical profile like that can deteriorate quickly if not properly managed.

Now it is interesting to note that today the NBA made some fairly drastic changes to their policy on resting players, and Stan Van Gundy commented on that policy saying he believes that healthy players should always play. So, how does that affect Zion Williamson and the New Orleans Pelicans this season and going forward?

Breaking down the New Orleans Pelicans’ load management dilemma with Zion Williamson

It’s my opinion that the New Orleans Pelicans are entering a dangerous game with Zion Williamson, and the future of their franchise. Manage Williamson or don’t, but what’s the cost?

If the Pelicans do manage Zion Williamson, they risk missing the playoffs. That’s just a fact considering the team’s roster is currently built on a strong starting lineup that lacks the depth of a true contending team. Letting Williamson rest during games means that the Pelicans would likely have to insert the unproven Wenyen Gabriel into the starting lineup. Right now, you can’t trust that he’d contribute in that role.

What’s the flip side? The Pelicans could easily ride Zion Williamson for this 72-game season to make a playoff push, but that would mean playing him for heavy minutes and opening him up to more injuries. Is it worth it for the organization to have Zion Williamson lead them to playoffs if he then begins to physically fall apart before they can become contenders?

Now, obviously, there’s a chance that neither of those scenarios ends up happening, but the point is the Pelicans have to find the proper balance with Zion Williamson. That could happen in many different ways. The easy one, for example, would be not playing Williamson much in the second half of blowout games. However, there needs to be more than that.

I only make this argument because this year’s Pelicans team is set up to face an exciting but daunting regular season. It’s a brief 72 game season filled with travel and overarching concerns from COVID-19. That season will head right into the NBA postseason, and we’ll all have to see how that plays out for Zion Williamson.