After spending some time in Portland to rehab his injury, New Orleans Pelicans forward Zion Williamson is going back to NOLA to continue his recovery. However, he won’t be joining the team in their away games as he works his way back to full health.

According to Andrew Lopez of ESPN, Williamson is progressing to full-weight bearing activities as he looks to improve his bone strength. After all, he broke a bone in his right foot during the offseason, and it was made clear he needed to work on it given the number of setbacks he has experienced so far.

With that said, there are no 1-on-0 practices or any basketball activity for him for now.

Williamson is back in the city.

With the team set to leave for a road trip in a couple of hours, Williamson will join the team once they return next week, sources told ESPN today.

He is progressing to full-weight bearing activities. No 1-on-0 or anything like that for now. https://t.co/chXQLkEkOw

— Andrew Lopez (@_Andrew_Lopez) March 5, 2022

With the way things are progressing, it seems unlikely that Zion Williamson will still be able to play for the Pelicans in their remaining regular season games this 2021-22. It doesn’t look like New Orleans is rushing to get him back as well, probably understanding that they are not yet ready to compete even if they make the playoffs through the play-in.

Regardless, it is undoubtedly a positive sign that Williamson is rejoining the team. His presence alone should be a massive boost for a team looking towards the future.

There have been several rumors about Williamson’s stance on the Pelicans and his desire to stay with the franchise since it’s a small-market team. His lack of engagement with New Orleans– highlighted by the fact that he didn’t reach out to CJ McCollum after New Orleans traded for him–has also been a major talking point that fueled speculations he could want out of the team. Not to mention how he was giddy about playing in Madison Square Garden last year, linking him to a possible move to a bigger market where there will be more opportunities for him on and off the court.

It remains to be seen what will happen to Zion in the last month of the regular season, but hopes are high he’ll show signs of major progress that will ensure fans he’ll be ready to suit up and play come the 2021-22 campaign.