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Zion Williamson was arguably in his best shape ever ahead of the 2025-26 campaign.
With a leaner, more athletic look, Pelicans fans couldnt help but be excited about the transformation.
After a string of injuries quickly sabotaged his career, his weight ballooned to 330 lbs from his official listing at 284 lbs when he suffered a foot injury in 2021.
However, before the new season, Williamson completely flipped that narrative.
During the teams annual media day and press conference last year in September, Zanos stopped the NBA world in its tracks with his latest ripped physique.
Lifting the curtains on his transformation, Williamson credited his athletic training.
We came up with a plan, from boxing to working out on the football field a lot to just different random workouts, he told the press, as published by Bleacher Report.
Boxing and football are known to be footwork-heavy sports.
Incorporating those into the exercise regimen can instantly help with coordination, conditioning, and even weight loss.
I really felt a shift in my body to where I would look at [my trainer] and go, Dude, it feels good to feel good,' he explained.
In fact, Williamson even admitted that he hadnt felt like this since college.
Whats worth noticing is that everything he mentioned was functional training instead of lifting heavier in the gym.
That wasnt the only shift in Williamsons training approach, though.
Despite participating in only 45% of the Pelicans games since his recruitment, Williamsons team members never once stopped believing in him.
That camaraderie and trust were what pushed the power forward to rebound from his injury better than ever.
While on rehabilitation for his hamstring injury last offseason, Williamson revealed in the same interview that he sat down with the Pelicans trainer, Daniel Bove, to discuss his path forward.
Bove asked him just one question.
When you come back from rehab, we want you to be better than before it happened.
What are some things you like to do? How can we make the workouts in a way that youre having fun and youre really enjoying it? asked Bove, as published by CBS Sports.
That changed everything for the NBA star.
From exhausting, generic workouts to a tailored approach, no wonder the shift was instant.
He quickly became more regular in the team sessions, with even coach Willie Green praising his consistency.
A fresh mindset and a training regimen built around enjoyment could be exactly what Williamson needed to turn the page.
But the real question is whether he can maintain this conditioning.
Do you think this will help his performance? More must-reads:.