Brandon Ingram and CJ McCollum absent, the Pelicans gave the keys to Zion Williamson to win against the Thunder. The interior of New Orleans had a very complete game with 23 points, 8 rebounds, 8 assists and 3 blocks (career records tied for the last two statistics).
“He handled things perfectly well”notes Willie Green for ESPN. “You can see it in his assists. There were times when he knew he could go to the basket, with his speed, but he trusted his teammates. We are very proud of him. »
Before scoring a basket, with the fault, decisive in the last minute of the meeting, the former Duke had already made the difference during the 11-4 Pelicans in the third quarter. During this sequence, he scored or passed on each basket of his team.
“I always try to make the right choice”he said. “If three players are on me, two teammates are open. »
Unheard of since Michael Jordan
This game is also (and finally) the 100th All-Star in the NBA. Between his delayed start to his career, the pandemic in March 2020 and finally his white season in 2021/2022, Zion Williamson will have taken three years to reach this bar, while several of his comrades from the 2019 Draft have already crossed that of 200 matches …
“It’s been a long journey and I can finally reach those 100 matches”reacted the star of the Pelicans, always for ESPN. “Did I like that this trip unfolded like this? Clearly not, no. I would have liked to play all the matches. But deep down, I’m grateful to have been through it all. »
Among the many figures, more or less relevant, which surround this passage time, we can retain two. Already, Zion Williamson has exceeded 20 points 83 times, and no one has done better since Michael Jordan (85).
Additionally, with 2,524 points scored, the New Orleans star becomes the 12th player to score at least 2,500 points in his first 100 games after Wilt Chamberlain, Walt Bellamy, Oscar Robertson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, George Mikan, Rick Barry, Elvin Hayes, Elgin Baylor, David Thompson, Billy Knight and Michael Jordan. The list is prestigious since all, except Billy Knight, finished in the Hall of Fame.
| Zion Williamson | Percentage | Bounces | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Crew | GM | Minimum | Shots | 3 points | LF | Off | Def | Early | pd | party | Int | bp | CT | Points |
| 2019-20 | NOP | 24 | 28 | 58.3 | 42.9 | 64.0 | 2.7 | 3.6 | 6.3 | 2.1 | 1.8 | 0.7 | 2.5 | 0.4 | 22.5 |
| 2020-21 | NOP | 61 | 33 | 61.1 | 29.4 | 69.8 | 2.7 | 4.5 | 7.2 | 3.7 | 2.2 | 0.9 | 2.7 | 0.6 | 27.0 |
| 2022-23 | NOP | 14 | 31 | 57.5 | 37.5 | 70.5 | 2.0 | 4.3 | 6.3 | 3.7 | 2.5 | 1.1 | 2.4 | 0.3 | 22.4 |
| Total | 99 | 32 | 60.0 | 33.9 | 68.6 | 2.6 | 4.2 | 6.9 | 3.3 | 2.1 | 0.9 | 2.6 | 0.5 | 25.3 | |
