By Johnny Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
Any player looking to return to action after such a long stay on the injury list and picking up an injury can be concerning. That would be the case for Zion Williamson.
“I’m fine,” he said commenting on his early exit from the NBA Preseason game between the New Orleans Pelicans and Miami Heat held at FTX Arena Wednesday.
Williamson, 22, rolled his left ankle in the second quarter. He was already up to 11 points, four assists, and two rebounds and 10:52. He initially stayed on the court before being ruled out for the remainder of the test game.
‘”I want to use the right term, but in the moment, it didn’t feel too good,” he was careful talking about the injury marking his fourth appearance in the 2022 NBA Preseason, “It was one of those things that happened and I popped back up like, ‘Yeah, I’m straight.’ Played a few minutes after that, felt fine, then they sent me to the back just to double-check.”
“He’s doing fine,” added Pelicans head coach Willie Green, “Looks like, I think, he might have rolled his ankle a little bit. He’ll be day to day.”
Due to right knee problems, Williamson did not play at all in the 2021-22 season and was limited to 85 games over his first two campaigns in the NBA. Coming out of Duke, he was the top selection of the 2019 NBA draft.
Spanish teammate and 2022 EuroBasket MVP, Willy Hernangomez stepped up with 17 points and seven rebounds but the Pelicans lost, 120-103, to the Heat. Serbian Nikola Jovic logged six points, four rebounds, and two assists for the winning side.
Elsewhere, Giannis Antetokounmpo posted a 24-point, 14-rebound double-double as the Milwaukee Bucks fell to the Brooklyn Nets, 107-97, in Fiserv Forum.
Lithuanian Domantas Sabonis packed nine points, ten rebounds, five assists, and four steals helping the Sacramento Kings edge the Phoenix Suns, 105-104. On the losing end, French Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot went for nine points.
Recovering from a wrist injury, Serbian superstar Nikola Jokic was limited to two points but the Denver Nuggets beat the Los Angeles Clippers, 126-115, in Ontario’s Toyota Arena. Slovenian Vlatko Cancar chipped in 11 points.
Turkish Cedi Osman ended up with 16 points, seven rebounds, two assists, and one block and was among the leading players as the Cleveland Cavaliers defeated the Atlanta Hawks, 105-99. Swiss Clint Capela with eight points, 15 rebounds, and four blocks, and Czech Vit Krejci with two points were in action for the Hawks.
Georgian Goga Bitadze had eight points for the Indiana Pacers in the win, 109-100, against the New York Knicks. For the losing side, French Evan Fournier and German Isaiah Hartenstein tallied eight and seven points, respectively.
A friendly win for the Philadelphia 76ers, 99-94, over the Charlotte Hornets. Turkish Furkan Korkmaz tallied two points in six minutes.
German Dennis Schroder did not score over nine minutes debuting in the preseason. The Los Angeles Lakers lost, 118-113, to the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Photo Credit: Getty Images