Zion Williamson seems impressed by his New Orleans Pelicans after Willie Green’s boys win 2nd game in a row.
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The New Orleans Pelicans are looking dangerous to the start of this 2022-2023 season. First, backed by a 25-point performance by Zion Williamson, NOLA upset the Brooklyn Nets at the Barclays Center. And yesterday night, Willie Green’s boys grabbed a second win after defeating the LaMelo Ball-less Charlotte Hornets.
Brandon Ingram and co. had a perfect start to their home opener against the Hornets. The Pels caught an early lead and never found themselves trailing throughout the contest. A pretty one-sided affair that saw merely 1 lead change and a single tie, ended with the New Orleans-based franchise winning 124-112.
2-0, good first week@HancockWhitney pic.twitter.com/1uK0EsdJot
— New Orleans Pelicans (@PelicansNBA) October 22, 2022
Also Read: Steve Kerr’s Hilarious Response When Asked About Keeping it Together
One of the only 4 Western Conference franchises to start this season 2-0, the Pels have a picture-perfect start to this season.
This is a special team”: Zion Williamson
After this brilliant star, the 6’6″ forward had ample praise for his team and teammates. This was huge considering Zion was a part of the most deadly college basketball team of all-time – the 2018 Duke Blue Devils.
Despite consisting of RJ Barrett, Cam Reddish, Tre Jones, and Williamson himself, the southpaw stated how he’s never played with a team like the 2022 Pels in his entire life.
“Our team is deep,” Zion Williamson said. “We have a lot of pieces. It’s different. I haven’t played with a team like this through my entire life. Closest was college, but at the pro level, this is something different. I say it all the time, but this is a special team and I’m excited to see what we’re going to do.”
#Pelicans | @verizon https://t.co/MP3LnZ2Ex4
— New Orleans Pelicans (@PelicansNBA) October 22, 2022
It will be extremely entertaining to see just how well this “special team” performs this year. If BI and co. keep up this same intensity, we may very well witness the Pelicans disappoint a few title contenders.
NOLA’s stars shine against the Charlotte Hornets
Friday night’s clash was all about the NOLA big four of BI, CJ McCollum, Zion, and Jonas Valancuinas.
JV was certainly the player of the game with 30 points, 17 boards, and 4 assists on an efficient 72.7% shooting. Ingram, who had a staggering 28/7/5 outing against the Nets, managed to record a 28-point, 9-rebound, and 7-assist near triple-double. Whereas, McCollum contributed 21 points in 31:34 minutes.
As for Williamson, the 22-year-old recorded 16 points and finished the game with a box plus-minus of +13.
— Kevin Barrios (@kevinbforbounce) October 22, 2022
It’s been merely two games since the start of the season, and the 2022 Pelicans might be one of the most well-constructed New Orleans teams we’ve seen. Apart from the four stars, role players like Herb Jones, Trey Murphy III, Devonte’ Graham, and Larry Nance Jr., among others, are lethal scoring options.
Williamson certainly believes that this is one of the most special teams he has been a part of.