Kenny Smith offers blunt solution for Zion Williamson, weight problem

New Orleans Pelicans’ forward Zion Williamson has been unable to stay off the injury list in his three NBA seasons, and the Duke product has not yet made his 2021-22 debut.

Due to various ailments, Williamson played just 85 games in his first two NBA seasons combined. The first-overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft has been effective when healthy, averaging 25.7 points, 7.0 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game, but he’s still recovering from offseason surgery to repair a fractured left foot. Though injuries are commonplace in the NBA, or any professional sports league for that matter, Williamson’s injuries have given way to speculation regarding his stature and physical shape. Many wondered whether he had gained weight in the offseason; the 6-foot-6 forward is currently listed at 284 pounds.

Two-time NBA champion-turned-analyst Kenny Smith offered a blunt solution to Williamson’s weight problem on Monday, explaining to TMZ Sports how the third-year player could end this narrative once and for all.

“Every player in their career, they’re going to get hurt at some point if you have a long career. And in that time, you’ve got to figure out how to stay in shape and stay into a basketball body,” Smith said. “I know he wants to play. He’ll figure out how to eat less. It’s not hard. It’s not hard when it’s your profession. He puts the hours in to become a great basketball player, he’ll figure out those hours that he needs to keep his body right. It’s the same thing. It’s the same commitment; it’s not hard. Just eat less.”

Smith was honest in his assessment of Williamson, explaining that the South Carolina native simply needs to eat less in order to get his body back to NBA shape. He’s not the first host of TNT’s “Inside the NBA” to critique Williamson’s physique, either, as Shaquille O’Neal and Charles Barkley had their own conversation regarding Williamson’s weight last week.

“It looks like me and Shaq had a baby,” Barkley said on the popular NBA show after watching a video of Williamson warming up. “This dude eats good in New Orleans. I’m joking and I’m serious. I’m concerned. I am really concerned.”

Barkley went on to tell a story from his own NBA career when Moses Malone once made remarks about his weight and work ethic, prompting a “turning point” in his career. Barkley believes this moment will help Williamson in the long run, who could change his diet ahead of his return to the lineup.

Williamson, the consensus No. 5 recruit in the 2018 class, went on to play one season at Duke, averaging 22.6 points, 8.9 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game. He was named the Consensus National Player of the Year during the 2018-19 season, leading the Blue Devils to an NCAA Tournament Elite Eight appearance.