What happened to Zion Williamson? Latest injury update for Pelicans All-Star as he exits game vs Clippers (Jan. 5)

Zion Williamson exited the LA Clippers-New Orleans Pelicans game with a leg injury and he won't be returning. Williamson injured himself in the third quarter of the game, with the Pelicans deeming it as a "right leg contusion". The extent of the injury is unknown.

However, the Pelicans were in the middle of an imminent blowout loss against the LA Clippers, so this could be a precaution. The Pelicans got outscored by 17 points in Zion's 19 minutes. He had 12 points, six rebounds, one assist, one steal and one block apiece.

Zion's injury was surprising as there was seemingly no particular play where he seemed to have injured himself. He exited the game at the 8:24 mark in the third quarter during a Clippers timeout when the Pelicans announced he wouldn't return.

New Orleans was trailing by 17 points when Zion Williamson exited the game.

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Zion Williamson Injury: How many games has Pelicans star missed?

Williamson has missed six games this season. Almost all of his absences have been due to various ailments. The first one was because of an injury management rest on Nov. 2 against the Detroit Pistons. That game was on the second night of a back-to-back. Zion missed his second game on Nov. 8 against the Minnesota Timberwolves due to personal reasons.

He missed his third game on Nov. 25 against the Utah Jazz citing rest again as it was a back-to-back. He missed his fourth on Dec. 13 against the Washington Wizards because of an ankle injury. He missed another one on Dec. 23 at Houston because of an illness. The Pelicans have gone 3-3 in Williamson's injury absence.

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Pelicans call it right with keeping Zion Williamson on sidelines after leg injury

Zion Williamson and the New Orleans Pelicans were seemingly headed for a blowout loss against the LA Clippers when he exited the game. The Pelicans lost 111-95, showing no signs of staging a comeback at any juncture once the LA Clippers created some separation by half-time.

They took a 15-point lead at the break after the game seemingly appeared to be a close one early on. LA was the hotter team from the field, shooting 48.8%. Meanwhile, the Pelicans shot 35.9%. None of the Pelicans players scored more than 15 points.

Paul George was the LA Clippers' best player with 24 points, seven rebounds and seven assists on 60.0% shooting (6-of-10 from 3). Jonas Valanciunas was the Pelicans' most impactful player, with 13 points and 11 rebounds on 50.0% shooting.

The Pelicans have now dropped to 21-15. New Orleans will hope Zion Williamson's injury is nothing serious and he can be good to go on Sunday against the Sacramento Kings.