Will Zion Play This Season? His Stepdad Thinks So

In an appearance on “The Jordy Culotta Show,” Zion Williamson‘s stepfather, Lee Anderson, said he thinks Williamson can play this season for the Pelicans, although he conceded it was a difficult question to answer.

“I expect him to play. If you were to ask Zion, I’m sure he would probably say the same thing,” Anderson said, per ESPN’s Andrew Lopez. “But with just a couple of games left, with the magnitude of what’s going on in New Orleans and the opportunity to qualify for the play-in game and possibly get into a seven-game series, that would be off the charts in the city of New Orleans. That would be a plus in New Orleans. That would be a plus for Zion with the way things are right now.

“Do I expect him to play? Certainly I do. That’s on me, though. That’s purely me. I don’t think there’s anything else that would hinder him from doing that right now.”

A report back in February stated that Anderson is very involved in Williamson’s career, so his comments are sure to be noted by the organization. Williamson has missed the entire season after having setbacks in his recovery from offseason foot surgery.

Anderson said the team has been taking a big picture approach with Williamson’s rehab, focusing on his long-term health, but Anderson seems to have a different philosophy.

“He’s feeling great,” Anderson said. “Speaking for the Pelicans staff, and not saying any names, they mentioned to me that they are just one player away from being where we need to be at. That was enough for me to know that they are putting some stock in Zion getting healthy and being ready for the long haul.

“But my thing with the long haul, you have to wait on it. The short haul, sometimes when you’re faced with an opportunity right now, you never know when you’re going to be presented with that opportunity again in the long haul or how long it’ll be from that time. I’m a guy that believes in taking advantage of the moment at hand. Let’s deal with it right now and let’s go forward and see what happens.”

Regarding the reported discord between Williamson’s camp and the Pelicans front office, Anderson denied the persistent rumors, saying he likes the direction that New Orleans is headed.

“I don’t know where the comments or the rumblings or the misunderstandings came from. It’s always someone referring to someone in Zion’s camp. And ‘sources say.’ There are only four sources in Zion’s camp. Zion’s mom [Sharonda Anderson]. That’s me. That’s Noah [Williamson’s little brother]. And that’s Zion. If it didn’t come from one of us, they are not sources,” Anderson said, per Lopez. “We have not sourced information to anybody on Zion’s behalf at any time. If anybody can come back and say we said that, we’ll discount that.

“We’re enjoying New Orleans. We’re enjoying the fabric. We love the pickups that the Pelicans have made the last month or so. We’re excited about that. We think — the acquisitions they have made and Zion being on the mend 110 percent — we think the future is very bright in New Orleans right now.”

Anderson also praised coach Willie Green and said he likes the team’s chances in the play-in tournament — the Pelicans are currently the No. 9 seed in the West with a 34-44 record. The full article from Lopez with all of Anderson’s quotes can be found here.