Despite his continued durability issues, the New Orleans Pelicans are reportedly not looking to move on from forward Zion Williamson.

Speaking Tuesday on the Pat McAfee Show (h/t HoopsHype), ESPN NBA insider Shams Charania was asked about the Pels' potential options when it comes to getting the five-year $197.23 million contract he signed in 2022 off the books:

Charania noted that while the Pelicans could waive Williamson and get out of it that way, he doesn't anticipate it happening, saying:

"There are ways where, if the Pelicans were to waive him, they could potentially do that for free. However, I don't believe that's something that's on the table right now. The Pelicans have no intention of waiving Zion Williamson. They want to figure out a way—any way—to find the right people around him and do anything necessary to get him on the court. That's their number one objective."

Williamson, 24, has appeared in only six games this season and is currently out with a strained hamstring.

Selected first overall in the 2019 NBA draft out of Duke, Williamson was expected to be a dominant force at the NBA level, and while he has shown glimpses of being precisely that, staying on the court has been a struggle.

Over his first four NBA seasons, Williamson was named an All-Star twice, but he missed an entire season during that stretch with a foot injury and appeared in fewer than 30 games in two of the other three seasons.

Williamson finally had a largely healthy season in 2023-24, appearing in a career-high 70 games and averaging 22.9 points, 5.8 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 1.1 steals per contest, while shooting 57.0 percent from the field.

With a healthy Zion, the Pelicans had their winningest season since 2008-09 when they were the Charlotte Hornets, although they were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs.

Intent on capitalizing on the momentum they built last season, the Pelicans acquired guard Dejounte Murray in an offseason trade with the Atlanta Hawks, adding him to a core of Williamson, CJ McCollum and Brandon Ingram.

That made the Pels a trendy pick to do some damage in the Western Conference this season, but with all of their key players missing some time due to injury, they have been among the NBA's biggest disappointments with a Western Conference-worst 4-18 record.

Williamson has only appeared in six games so far this season, averaging 22.7 points, 8.0 rebounds and 5.3 assists, and it is unclear when he could potentially return.

Charania said during his appearance on the Pat McAfee Show that Williamson is "not close" to returning despite having already been on the shelf for a month.

Without arguably their best player in the fold, it will likely be difficult for the Pelicans to fight their way out of the basement this season, meaning they may have to give consideration to looking toward next season and beyond.

Even if moving on from Williamson isn't on the table, it is probably safe to assume the Pels would be open to trading Ingram, who will hit free agency during the offseason.

As things currently stand, the Pelicans are positioned to possibly land one of the top picks in the 2025 NBA draft, which could land them an elite prospect such as Duke's Cooper Flagg or Rutgers' Ace Bailey to pair with Williamson provided he can get his health back on track.