Is Zion Williamson playing tonight against the Houston Rockets? Latest injury update from the New Orleans Pelicans (October 12th)

Zion Williamson and the New Orleans Pelicans are set for a 2023-24 NBA preseason matchup against the Houston Rockets on Thursday (Oct. 12). The game will mark the Pelicans’ second of four preseason games after they lost their preseason home opener against the Orlando Magic 122-105 on Tuesday. As for the Rockets, they will be playing in their second of five preseason games after defeating the Indiana Pacers 122-103 in their home opener on Tuesday.

Concerning Williamson’s availability, it appears that he will be good to play as he is not currently listed on the Pelicans’ injury report. However, given that it is preseason, the team could opt to rest the injury-prone star closer to game time. Outside of Williamson, big men Cody Zeller (back), Liam Robbins (leg) and Larry Nance Jr. (ankle), as well as guard Jose Alvarado (ankle), are all listed as day-to-day. Meanwhile, forward Trey Murphy III (knee) remains out.

As for Houston, guard Kevin Porter Jr. (personal) is currently the only player listed on the team’s injury report. Porter remains away from the Rockets indefinitely due to off-court issues.

Thursday’s game between the Pelicans and the Rockets will tip off at 8 p.m. ET at the Legacy Arena in Alabama.

CJ McCollum on Zion Williamson’s preseason debut

New Orleans Pelicans teammates Zion Williamson and CJ McCollum

Zion Williamson’s preseason debut on Tuesday marked his first in-game action in over nine months. The star forward missed the majority of last season due to a right hamstring injury that he sustained against the Philadelphia 76ers on Jan 2.

In his debut, Williamson was productive in limited action, finishing with 12 points, five rebounds and five assists on 50.0% shooting in just 15 minutes. This included Williamson converting on a dunk, a buzzer-beating floater, a turnaround jumper and an and-one layup.

After the game, Williamson’s teammate, veteran guard CJ McCollum, raved about how impressive he was:

“He looked good. He’s unstoppable,” McCollum said.

“So, he’s going to do what he wants out there on the court.”

McCollum also spoke about how the Pelicans just want to make sure they maximize Williamson’s skill set by playing at a fast enough pace:

“It’s just a matter of us getting our spacing right, playing with the right pace, tempo, getting stops and getting out and running,” McCollum said.

“But he’s going to figure it out. He’s going to be successful. We just got to make sure we continue to push the pace.”

McCollum then touched on New Orleans’ desire to see Williamson play in as many games as possible after playing just 29 games last season:

“Obviously, we want our best players to be able to play every night and this is a step in that direction,” McCollum said.

“And it’s an opportunity for the fans to see the work that he’s put in — the work that we’ve put in collectively to try to be better this season.”

Williamson averaged 26.0 points, 7.0 rebounds, 4.6 assists, 1.1 steals and 0.6 blocks per game on 60.8% shooting over 29 games last season.