Gilbert Arenas Got Zion Williamson To Open Up About Dieting And Staying In Shape

Most of the NBA world has been in Las Vegas this past weekend for Summer League, as the NBA has built out the summer showcase for young players into a full-on event for the entire league.

While Victor Wembanyama took center stage for his two games with the Spurs before shutting it down, a number of the NBA’s current stars have been in Vegas working out, partying, and granting some rare interviews to the many media outlets on site. On Monday night, one of the most interesting of those interviews came courtesy of Gilbert Arenas, who did a live Gil’s Arena show from Vegas and got Zion Williamson to come through and talk.

Williamson has had his name in plenty of headlines this summer, with off-court exploits and trade rumors swirling. All the while, he’s working to get back onto the floor after having another injury derail his season last year, with his weight and how it contributes to his struggles to stay healthy remaining a constant topic of conversation. Williamson has, understandably, not often wanted to wade into those waters in interviews, but with Arenas he did open up some about his struggles early in his career dieting, noting that it’s tough to bet 21 years old, with all the money you could dream of, and stay disciplined.

Zion notes that he’s trying to surround himself with more wisdom and people that will keep him in check (who knows if that’ll include Charles Barkley, who has offered to help Zion). He also went on to note that his issue is less about needing to lose a ton of weight and more about becoming more flexible and putting in the work needed to have his body more mobile and functional — at whatever weight — saying that he just needs to follow LeBron James’ blueprint.

That would be an excellent example for Williamson to strive for, as James has always been great about taking care of his body, even when he was playing at a heavier weight. LeBron has trimmed down a touch as he’s gotten older, but there were years where he was an absolute tank, he just had the flexibility and mobility to make that work. For Williamson, he has to strike that balance, because a big part of his game is his strength and ability to muscle through contact. Losing a ton of weight would work against him in that regard, so he’s right to focus on balancing being big and strong with finding that flexibility and mobility to maximize that talent and avoid the injuries that have derailed his career thus far.

Hopefully Williamson’s recent injury woes and finding himself in trade rumors will serve as the motivation needed to fully buy in to doing that work in a way he hasn’t thus far, because he has been one of the league’s best players when he’s played, it’s just been far too common to see him in street clothes.