For the second time this season, the New Orleans Pelicans debutant Zion Williamson’s “debut” was marred by a minute restriction that kept him out of a close game in the final minutes.
Williamson made his debut on January 22, and after his 17 point outburst nearly blew the roof of New Orleans’ Smoothie King Center, the rookie headed for the last 5:23 and the pelicans lost the San Antonio Spurs.
Thursday night when the NBA resumed its season with Williamson and the pelicans in the first game, he was absent again in the last few minutes in what turned into a 106-104 New Orleans loss against Utah Jazz in Lake Buena Vista, in Florida.
Williamson was ready to play a predetermined number of minutes and had reached his quota when he came out in the fourth quarter with 7:19 remaining while New Orleans held on to a four point lead. He didn’t even return when Jazz took the lead, or with 6.9 seconds remaining since the pelicans had a chance to draw or win, down two.
“Sure, we wish we could have played it along the stretch, but we used the minutes we were given and it is,” said pelican coach Alvin Gentry.
“We would not have forced him to lock him out there. The doctors said that we played them in the minutes that allowed us to interpret him, and to go on. I thought he was fine, I thought he had good moments and obviously we are a very good team better and different when he’s out on the field. “
Asked if it was a purely conditioning problem with Williamson – who lost the first 43 games of the season due to knee surgery – Gentry said, “They told me the minutes he could play, and that’s what I have. done.”
In total, Williamson played 15 minutes against Jazz and scored 13 points in 6-of-8. He hasn’t brought down a rebound for the first time in his young NBA career. He also committed three fouls, had two lost balls and was the worst minus 16 in his career.
Williamson said that “it’s not just a conditioning”, but he’s recovering his flow and feeling for the game.
“This is the NBA, this is the best player in the world and you want to feel comfortable,” said Williamson. “I don’t want to hurt my team any more than it has helped them in a way if you understand me.”
Williamson left the Orlando bubble on July 16 to cure a family medical emergency and returned on July 24. Once back on the NBA campus, he had to quarantine his hotel room for four days.
He left the quarantine on Tuesday and joined the pelicans to practice, but didn’t do any 5 out of 5 or 3 out of 3 jobs. He trained with the team again on Wednesday – though Gentry called it a light practice – and did the shoaround on Thursday morning. It was a game decision for the opener against Jazz.
Williamson said the team was not holding him back and although he wanted to be on the floor at the end of the fourth quarter, the team could easily have kept him completely out.
So how long will it take to regain its flow?
“Honestly, I don’t know how long it will take,” said Williamson. “I guess maybe a couple of games.”
Williamson claimed that he had no setbacks during the conditioning, but mentioned that he felt January again when it came to sitting down the stretch.
The loss dropped New Orleans to 4.5 games in the Western Conference’s eighth seed with seven games to play. New Orleans returns to action Saturday against the Los Clippers before tackling eighth place Memphis Grizzlies on Monday.
.
