Zion Williamson flies over a nest of Raptors

At +31 in the third quarter, the Pelicans sailed serenely towards victory against Toronto, when the Raptors gradually nibbled away to return to -11 only five minutes from the end of the game.

Without Brandon Ingram or CJ McCollum, New Orleans then turned to Zion Williamson to regain control. And the strong winger responded.

In two actions, with a counter on Pascal Siakam followed by a big dunk in two stages, then dispossessing OG Anunoby before going to conclude the layup, Zion Williamson put the Pels at ease. An easy victory (126-108) and a season record for the strong winger: 33 points plus 10 rebounds, 5 assists, 4 steals and 2 blocks, all at an excellent 12/15 on shots!

“I told him in the locker room that he had been monstrous. He is the one who carried us, reacted Willie Green on ESPN. “He kept making the right choices over and over again. When we needed a basket, we put the ball in his hands. He went to the circle. He went to throws. He flew over this game on both sides of the field. »

As a good leader, Zion Williamson thus propelled an 8-0 which sealed the victory for his team. Better still, he was the one who set the tone defensively, getting deeply involved in these obscure tasks. But without pulling the blanket on him, it’s not the style of the house!

“I moved my feet well”, humbly replied Zion Williamson. “On the counters that I was able to obtain, it was thanks to the work of Dyson, Herb or Trey who defended well by forcing their player to take complicated shots and I was able to pick them behind on the counter. Collectively, we played really well in defense. »

“Nothing can happen to us, we have this guy with us! »

For the first time since the 2017-18 season, the Pelicans have a rather brilliant record, with five games above the 50% win mark (13 wins for 8 losses). The result of in-depth work for New Orleans, which has built up a nice little squad, embodied on Wednesday evening by Trey Murphy’s 26 points, or Dyson Daniels who finished very close to the triple-double at 14 points, 9 assists and 8 rebounds.

“I will continue to hammer it: it is about our whole team”, insists Willie Green. “Z plays a big role in the team. But these are all our guys. Collectively, we were on the same wavelength. We defended well on the ball carrier and then we finished the possessions by securing the rebounds. Once again, I take my hat off to Z. We put a lot of responsibility on his shoulders and he carried us. »

Currently 3rd in the West, NOLA continues to gain momentum after a sluggish start, five wins for as many losses at the start of the season. And this, despite numerous absences, knowing that the five major projected Pels (Williamson, Ingram, McCollum, Valanciunas, Jones) could only play 10 games out of 21 possible.

“When you have two players like them who are missing, you will inevitably feel a difference”, concludes Zion Williamson. “I always praise Coach’s work on this. During the training camp, it was all about staying ready. If we stay ready, we don’t need to prepare. When your name is called in such situations, whether it’s Trey, Herb, Jose, or especially Dyson, they all respond by stepping up their game.”

Good loser, Pascal Siakam will recognize a posteriori that “Zion did what he wanted” on this match, while, decked out with a microphone during the match, Jose Alvarado could laugh on the bench pointing his finger at his teammate: “Nothing can happen to us, we have this guy with us! »