No. 1 overall draft pick Zion Williamson finally made his regular-season debut on Wednesday night in New Orleans, and his arrival to the NBA was worth the wait.
Williamson was quiet through most of the game, but exploded in the fourth quarter to give the Pelicans a chance to win the game. Williamson scored 17 consecutive points for the Pelicans in the fourth, but was eventually pulled from the game by coach Alvin Gentry, who was sticking to the Pelicans’ strict plan for Zion’s court time.
If you missed Williamson’s debut, you’re going to want to check out the highlights.
Williamson finished his first career game with 22 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, and 5 turnovers in 18 minutes of action. How does that stack up against the debuts of other NBA greats? Let’s take a closer look at the numbers.
1. Williamson had the highest per-minute scoring rate of any player in the shot clock era
2. Williamson’s 17-point streak was historic
3. Williamson’s three-point barrage came out of nowhere
Williamson went 4-for-4 from beyond the arc in the fourth quarter, and as Jrue Holiday noted after the game, Williamson may have been spending his time adding a new weapon to his arsenal. Williamson never hit more than three triples in a game at Duke, and only hit multiple threes in four games with the Blue Devils. He finished his only college season shooting 33 percent from three.
Williamson also became the first player to go 4-of-4 from three in his debut.
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