![]() ![]() Green has always emphasized ball movement, but with three players who can dominate the box score the way Williamson, Ingram and McCollum do, he's stressed it even more this season. McCollum had 21 points and six of the Pelicans' 31 assists. Ingram had a team-high 28 points with seven rebounds and five assists. "So it was nice to see us gel, It was nice to see us find shots and rhythm." ![]() "This is probably the first time we played together for more than 20 minutes, including practices," McCollum said. In fact, of the players who saw action against the Nets, only Ingram and Naji Marshall had played in a regular-season game with Williamson before.Īnd because of minor injuries to Williamson, Ingram and McCollum, the Pelicans never got to see their starting five in the preseason. It was the first time Williamson played with many of his new Pelicans teammates after not playing in a regular-season game since May 4, 2021. Despite the time missed, the only player with more games with 20 or more points in the paint since the beginning of the 2019-20 season is Giannis Antetokounmpo (74). In 86 career games, Williamson has had at least 20 points in the paint in 45 of those appearances, according to ESPN Stats & Information research. Williamson was 11-of-22 from the field, with all 11 of his baskets coming from inside the paint. He said that during warm-ups he could tell he missed the allure of being in an away arena and noted that when the starting lineups were announced it was another moment when he finally felt like things were returning to normal. Williamson said it was a "breath of fresh air" to get back on the floor after missing the 2021-22 regular season because of a broken foot. At this point it's just typical for him." "Got up 22 shots, nine rebounds, 25 points. "He looked healthy to me, he looked good," Durant said. Pelicans coach Willie Green said it was like Williamson "didn't miss a beat." Brandon Ingram said he simply "picked up where he left off."Īnd Nets forward Kevin Durant was among those not surprised. It was an effort hailed by his own team - and even the opposition. ![]() The numbers suggested far more than just decent. He collected 25 points, nine rebounds and four steals in the 130-108 wire-to-wire Pelicans win over the Brooklyn Nets at Barclays Center. "It's a lot of room for improvement," he said. NEW YORK - Despite praise from his teammates and coach, Zion Williamson called his regular-season return to the New Orleans Pelicans on Wednesday night just a "decent starter performance." Zion Williamson more than just 'decent' in Pelicans return He declared for the 2019 NBA Draft following his lone season at Duke.You have reached a degraded version of because you're using an unsupported version of Internet Explorer.įor a complete experience, please upgrade or use a supported browser The team lost in the Elite Eight in the NCAA tournament to the Michigan State Spartans. Williamson was named the ACC Tournament MVP. The tournament run included 31 points against rival North-Carolina in a one-point semifinal victory. He missed the rest of the team’s regular-season games but returned to help Duke capture the ACC Tournament championship. ![]() Zion infamously sprained his knee when his foot ripped through his Nike shoe. He had many more high-scoring games, including scoring 25 points in 22 minutes against Clemson and a 35-point, 10-rebound game against Syracuse which set a new record for points in a game by a Duke freshman. In his first game, he broke Duke’s record for scoring by a freshman on his debut, with 28 points. With RJ Barrett and Cam Reddish, the Blue Devils had one of the most talented recruiting classes in NBA history. Williamson played only one season of college basketball with the Duke Blue Devils under Mike Krzyzewski. ![]()
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