After months of the masses’ curiosity level being gauged at 2 minutes to midnight, Zion Williamson will make his NBA debut tonight at 9:30 against the Spurs.
I must say, I haven’t been this pumped to see a player make their NBA debut since LeBron James did it 17 years ago. I think a lot of folks feel the same way. The hype that surrounded LeBron was like nothing anyone ever saw before. And he lived up to it in his first game and has exceeded it a million fold for his entire career.
Ever since Zion was jumping out of the gym when he was a high school player, to when he was thunder dunking every night at Duke, we’ve collectively wanted to see him do this against NBA players. We saw a small glimpse of that in Summer League. Alas, it wasn’t meant to be. Zion’s freakish body wouldn’t allow his knee to do its job. He and we have had to wait until now to see what he looks on NBA hardwood.
Zion: What to Expect
Is he going to come out and look like the most unstoppable force to pick up a round ball in 17 years? Or is he going to look like a guy who’s timid and trying to find his legs? Here’s what we’re being told about how the Pelicans are going to handle his first game.
Typically, when a team says that they have a minute count in their mind, the player ends up playing 10 minutes more. So, I expect Zion to get around 25-30 minutes. What I want to see is no fear of destroying his shoes or any of his body parts. I want him to use the gifts that got him here.
I want to know what kind of shape he’s in. No matter what shape his body is currently in, I’d imagine that it isn’t truly ready for live-action. So, expect to see Zion breathing heavy at times. I want to see the Spurs scurry out of the way whenever Zion has the ball because they don’t want to be the first poster. And, I want to see at one least mega dunk. Preferably one that shatters the backboard to the point where folks in the nose bleeds are covered in glass.
By the end of Zion’s first game, most of ESPN and FS1 will have supernova level hot takes about how Zion’s career will shake out based on this one game. My advice is don’t even watch it although I know it’s hard to avoid on Twitter. Instead, understand that they are playing characters and have to determine a guy’s next 10 years of his career based on 30 minutes of play. Have fun watching one of the most intriguing athletes that have come along in a very long time.
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