Ordinarily, it might not be the most significant news that a player on a No. 11 seed, toward the end of the season, broke his finger and may very well miss a large chunk of time. But on a team where that player is one of the best in the league, and in a year where the No. 11 seed is very much in play for a postseason berth, it's not the most ideal situation in the world.
That's exactly the case for Zion Williamson and the New Orleans Pelicans, who announced the tough news on Friday afternoon.
Williamson earned his first All-Star selection in 2021, his second season, and has posted incredible averages of 27.0 points, 7.2 rebounds and 3.7 assists through 61 games. And the Pelicans have needed those stats to help them out — their offensive rating goes from 116.8 to 110.8 when he's not on the floor, and their net rating goes from +1.7 to -3.0 without the big man's presence. In the games he hasn't played, the Pels are 1-4, with the lone win coming against the lowly Houston Rockets.
If his season did in fact end today, there would be some sort of a small silver lining, if you're a huge optimist. He'd break statistical ground and achieve something that no other player has accomplished to this point in the history of the game.
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