Zion Williamson’s first Summer League game with the New Orleans Pelicans had plenty of intrigue. For starters, he was facing off against his Duke teammate and friend R.J. Barrett, as the Pelicans took on the New York Knicks.
There was also the issue of what shoe Williamson would wear, as he has yet to officially sign an endorsement deal and ended up taking the floor in the custom Kyrie 4s he wore at Duke, who had a lucrative Nike deal in place already. Whether he ends up at Nike or with someone else was not revealed on Friday night, but what was evident was that the Pelicans would be very, very careful with their latest franchise player.
That was evident when Williamson was held out of the rest of his first Summer League game after a knock to the knee early in the game’s first half.
https://twitter.com/r0bato/status/1147340050977480704?s=21
Word trickled down after that play that Williamson would not return to the contest, which featured some big dunks and a bit of the flash that Pelicans fans expect from the first overall pick in June’s NBA Draft.
Zion Williamson (left knee) took knee-to-knee hit. Will not return
— New Orleans Pelicans (@PelicansNBA) July 6, 2019
It certainly makes sense that the Pelicans would be careful with Williamson given the hype around his potential and the relative insignificance of Summer League games, especially for a pick as high as him. Still, for fans who sold out the building hoping to see him hoop, it has to rank as a disappointing first showing.
