Pelicans' Zion sitting out 'more precautionary'

After watching the New Orleans Pelicans defeat the Chicago Bulls 109-72 Monday night, star rookie Zion Williamson said the decision to sit out the rest of the Las Vegas Summer League was "more precautionary."

Williams, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, suffered a bruised knee in the second quarter in his debut Friday night. He finished with 11 points in nine first-half minutes against the New York Knicks. The Thomas & Mack Center was sold out for the game.

Pelicans general manager David Griffin said the team was shutting down Williamson.

"Zion will move forward from this incident without issue," Griffin said in a statement released Saturday. "However, in an abundance of caution, we have made the determination that he will not appear in game action for the remainder of the NBA summer league. He will continue to take part in training and conditioning with our performance team."

Williamson said it was "frustrating" to sit out. "I'm a competitor," he told ESPN. "Whenever I can play, I just want to play."

--Field Level Media