Zion Williamson left bubble to attend to family matter, plans to return

Zion Williamson has left Orlando to attend to a family matter and is planning to return to the bubble to rejoin the New Orleans Pelicans.

"We fully support Zion's decision to leave the NBA campus to be with his family," Pelicans executive vice president of basketball operations David Griffin said in a statement. "Out of respect for the Williamson family, we will have no further comment at this time."

If Williamson gets tested daily while he is gone, he would only need to quarantine a maximum of four days once he returns to Disney, with the minimum being two days. However, if he is not tested daily, he will be required to quarantine for at least a week. That would not be ideal for the Pelicans, who are trying to catch the Memphis Grizzlies to grab the eighth playoff spot in the Western Conference.

Williamson played less than 20 games for the Pelicans this season, but his impact on the team was immediate. He averaged 23.6 and 6.8 rebounds while helping get New Orleans back into the playoff picture. The Pelicans seemed prime to challenge the Grizzlies before the season was shut down by the coronavirus. Without Williamson, that will prove to be a much more difficult task. They are currently 3.5 games behind the Grizzlies with eight games remaining on their schedule.

The NBA season is set to resume on July 30, with the Pelicans opening with a matchup against the Utah Jazz, one of the most formidable defenses in the NBA.