Report: Zion Williamson ‘On Track’ to Reach Weight Clauses in $197M Pelicans Contract

Adam WellsDecember 31, 2024

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As Zion Williamson moves closer to returning to game action, the New Orleans Pelicans forward is likely to satisfy the weight criteria in his contract that guarantees a portion of his salary.

Per ESPN’s Tim MacMahon and Bobby Marks, Williams is “on track” to satisfy the weigh-in criteria that requires him to have a combined weight and body fat percentage below 295 to guarantee 20 percent of his salary for the 2025-26 season.

The remaining 80 percent of Williamson’s salary becomes guaranteed based on the number of games he plays in the previous season.

The remaining 80 percent of Williamson’s salary becomes guaranteed based on the number of games he plays in the previous season. He gets 40 percent of his money guaranteed if he plays in 41 games, 20 percent if he plays in 51 games and 20 percent if he plays in 61 games.

Williamson has already missed 27 games this season, so he won’t hit the 61-game benchmark. He can only miss four more games and still hit the 51-game threshold. The 24-year-old, who hasn’t played since Nov. 6, is expected to return to practice at some point this week. There is no set timeline for him to play in games.

MacMahon and Marks noted that Williamson’s contract requires he hit the weight benchmark at seven different dates during the season to earn his money. It’s unclear exactly when those checkpoints occur, but his extended absence due to a hamstring doesn’t appear to have impacted his ability to stay in good physical condition to pass a weigh-in.

Williamson originally signed a five-year, $197.2 million extension with the Pelicans in July 2022. The deal was structured to protect the club in the event he continued to struggle with injuries and/or didn’t keep himself in peak physical condition.

Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic noted in December 2023 that the final three years of Williamson’s deal were no longer guaranteed because he was unable to satisfy the minimum games played required in the contract during the 2022-23 season.

There was no concern at the time that the Pelicans were going to move on from Williamson, but things have continued to spiral in the wrong direction for both parties. His scoring average and field-goal percentage has decreased in the two years since his last All-Star appearance in 2022-23.

The Pelicans’ 5-28 record this season is the worst in the NBA. They have lost 18 of their last 19 games since Nov. 16.

Williamson’s 2025-26 salary doesn’t become fully guaranteed until July 15, so the Pelicans could wait until the offseason before making any decisions about his future.

As things currently stand, Williamson’s salary for next season could go from $39.4 million if he met all of his games played and weigh-in benchmarks down to as little as $7.9 million guaranteed.