After a white season due to a foot problem, Zion Williamson will make a long-awaited return to competition in a few days. The last few months have not been easy for the winger, who has been deprived of what he loved, and who has also had to deal with a lot of criticism once morest him: on his weight or even on the fact that he was injury prone, giving food for thought to those who doubt he might last in the NBA.
In a long interview with Sports Illustrated, he said he had experienced very difficult times.
“I had some dark times,” Williamson said, “because I mightn’t play basketball. I might only do rehabilitation and in a limited way. And just to see how the world reacted. It was a lot to take in. It weighed a lot on my mind.”
“I felt helpless. I mightn’t do anything regarding it. Then the pundits say that I don’t care regarding my teammates, or that I’m a bad teammate, or that I don’t want to be in New Orleans, while I worry regarding my foot all the time. I’m worried regarding my foot, I hope it heals properly, because if it doesn’t, who knows, maybe I won’t be able to play basketball anymore. »
He overcame this ordeal, not without difficulty, and now we expect him to return to the level he showed during the 2020-21 season. If many have forgotten him and like to repeat that he has nothing to prove in the NBA, he approaches this season without being obsessed with the idea of reminding the world who he is.
“If you had asked me two years ago, I would certainly have said, ‘Yes, I have to remind people who I am. I have to show the world who Zion is. But now, following this journey, it’s not even regarding showing the world who I am. It’s more to prove that I’m right. »
