Zion Williamson finally made his much-awaited NBA debut for the New Orleans Pelicans against the San Antonio Spurs today.

The Pelicans issued 165 press credentials for the game, compared to their average of roughly 25. That’s how big of a deal this game was in the eyes of the national press.

As the most-hyped rookie since LeBron James, it’s understandable that expectations were high for the one-of-a-kind physical specimen. Williamson is listed as 6’6 and 285 pounds, has arms bigger than most people’s legs, and has the quickness of a much smaller man.

The Pelicans are loaded with young talent, and even though they had a 17-27 record before today’s game started, the fanbase had a lot of reasons to be excited for the future. They’re a high-scoring team with a huge talent in Brandon Ingram (25.6 PPG, 6.7 RPG, 4.4 APG) and have six players with double-digit scoring averages. Derrick Favors (9.8 PPG) almost makes it seven.

Oh, and did we mention that today’s starting five that included Williamson had an average age of 23.4? Their entire roster also only has three players born before 1990: JJ Redick (1984) and E’Twaun Moore (1989).

The excitement for Williamson’s debut trumped all of that. Fans got a small glimpse of the man-mountain in the summer league, but he still needed to answer how he would perform in a real NBA game.

The Spurs got to double-teaming Williamson right away, and he looked happy to pass the ball instead of forcing the issue. He looked a little tentative at first, as you would expect a youngster to look in a game with so much pressure.

He then had a turnover while trying to hit a cutting Derrick Favors but followed that with an intelligent assist on the next possession that led to an Ingram dunk. He sat out for the first time after four minutes of play.

The rookie didn’t come back until the second quarter. His first bucket took a while and came in the form of a putback shot after grabbing an offensive rebound. He picked up an offensive foul trying to drive to the basket afterwards.

Wiliamson made his first big move of the game in the third quarter, using his quickness to drive past a couple of defenders from the corner and drawing a shooting foul. He then turned the ball over with a careless dribble on the next possession. On his final bucket of the third quarter, he almost fumbled a catch, but showed the ability to concentrate and still score a layup.

He had an explosive spin move that almost resulted in a basket in his first shot attempt of the fourth quarter, again giving a glimpse of the elite athleticism that has both fans and the media salivating. He also showed a willingness to work hard to save possessions, jumping for a ball that was headed out of bounds and getting it out to a teammate.

Williamson also showed a flash of his Duke days by grabbing a rebound and dribbling the ball down the floor before finding E’Twaun More with an assist.

It seemed too much to expect Williamson to be a world-beater while debuting after a knee surgery. His lateral movement seemed a bit slow, but he did use his body to set some big screens. He also looked like he could use a fair bit more conditioning and needs to slim down to survive the rigors of an 82-game season.

Unlike his time at Duke, where he was always the most physically dominating player on the floor, Williamson will be matched up against the world’s strongest and fastest basketball players on a daily basis. His tentative body language showed that he was grappling with that fact.

Then, in a flash, the real Zion Williamson stood up.

He scored 17 points in just a little over three minutes by making four shots from beyond the arc, two layups, and a free throw. He even briefly gave the Pelicans a one-point lead in a game they trailed by double digits. This threw coach Alvin Gentry’s minutes restriction plan out of the window as the replacement players for Williamson had to keep going back to the bench as he kept making bucket after bucket. He was finally benched with 5:23 remaining. The atmosphere in the building was electric and he was responsible for single-handedly breathing life back into the crowd.

Zion was having a relatively disappointing debut. Then this happened.

Buoyed by the loud cheers from the New Orleans fans who he inspired into a raucous assembly, Williamson’s body language was completely different after going to the bench for the last time. He was smiling, laughing, and joking around with his teammates.

It was evident from this first game that Williamson will draw a lot of attention from defenders. Beyond the double teams, Spurs defenders also collapsed on him when he drove to the basket.

The Spurs were a good team to debut against. Even though they aren’t among the Western Conference elite anymore, they’re still a scrappy team in the playoff hunt with a legendary coach in Greg Popovich. Williamson got a nice taste of what it would be like when a smart team makes a solid defensive plan against you.

However, because he’s on a young team that is focused on development, he’ll have the chance to play himself into shape and get used to the life of an NBA player.

Playing with someone like Lonzo Ball should also help in his development, because Ball knows a thing or two about being watched under a microscope by fans and the media. Ball should be able to teach Williamson about how to deal with the mental pressure that comes with being a high draft pick. Playing with a go-to scorer like Ingram will also ease the pressure and allow him to find an offensive rhythm over the season.

There were many positives to take from the debut. While some critics may say that he deferred to his teammates too much at the start, being a team player on a young squad will improve their chemistry. He showed what he was capable of when he gets in the zone.

Williamson is still a while away from playing starter’s minutes. He only played 8 minutes in the first half and 10 minutes in the second. His first official stat line of 22 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, and 5 turnovers on 8 of 11 shooting (4 of 4 from beyond the arc) plus his huge outburst in the fourth quarter shows that he has the talent to compete.

Much will be made about the rookie getting benched while he was red-hot from the field, but in the long run it is a smarter move to preserve his body for the future. Nobody will remember the fact that the Spurs came away with a 121-117 victory.

What everyone will remember is the first time they saw the number one pick of the 2019 NBA draft play, and that he looked like he belonged.

Welcome to the NBA, Mr. Williamson. It’s good to have you here.

Other Games

The Los Angeles Clippers followed up a close win to the Mavericks by laying an egg against the Atlanta Hawks, who saw a huge performance from John Collins (33 PTS, 16 REB, 2 AST, 3 STL, 1 BLK). Even with Kawhi resting, that’s inexcusable.

Jayson Tatum (23 PTS, 7 REB, 4 AST) led the Boston Celtics to a 119-95 blowout against the Memphis Grizzlies.

The Los Angeles Lakers bounced back from a huge loss to the Celtics with a hard-fought 100-92 win against the New York Knicks. Anthony Davis (28 PTS, 5 REB, 5 AST) led the way.

Dennis Schroder (31 PTS, 3 REB, 9 AST) had a huge game for the Oklahoma City Thunder, who beat the Orlando Magic 120-114.

It was another turn back the clock moment for Derrick Rose (22 PTS, 6 REB, 11 AST) as he and the Detroit Pistons put away the Sacramento Kings 127-106.

The Philadelphia 76ers followed up a 35-26 first quarter with a 15-24 second that let the Toronto Raptors back into the game and take control in the second half. Fred VanVleet (22 PTS, 5 REB, 8 AST) in the 107-95 victory.

It looked like a Russell ‘Bestbrook’ (28 PTS, 16 REB, 8 AST) night for the Houston Rockets as they smashed the Denver Nuggets 121-105.

Zach Lavine (25 PTS, 5 REB, 1 AST) helped the Chicago Bulls added to the Minnesota Timberwolves’ misery in a 117-110 win.

Jimmy Butler (24 PTS, 7 REB, 10 AST) put on another vintage performance in a gritty 134-129 overtime win for the Miami Heat against the Washington Wizards.

Domantas Sabonis (24 PTS, 13 REB, 4 AST) continued his strong play on the way to a 112-87 win for the Pacers, who were facing the faltering Phoenix Suns.

The Utah Jazz wrecked the Golden State Warriors 129-96 behind a big night from Rudy Gobert (22 PTS, 15 REB, 2 AST).