New Orleans Pelicans: Zion, Pels electrify sellout crowd at open practice

Fans came out in masses for a Saturday afternoon practice, giving them a first look at the new-look New Orleans Pelicans roster.

When 10,000 people showed up the Smoothie King Center for an open practice, selling out the presale limit four days before the event, it seemed something special could be afoot. The New Orleans Pelicans answered a lot of questions about their fanbase last night.

The city of New Orleans came out to see their Pelicans on a Saturday afternoon.

The doors opened at 5 p.m., as the stadium was already filled-in by 5:15 p.m. for the 6 p.m. practice session.

Last year, the practice was well attended, drawing 7,500. This year, they blew that out of the water, especially with the high level of enthusiasm shown from Pelicans fans.

Zion Williamson was the main draw, as the most-hyped first-overall pick since LeBron James. In response, the rookie thrilled over and over again.

Across the board, it gave players a chance to be forward-facing and fan-friendly as a brand new roster.

With new pieces like Brandon Ingram, Lonzo Ball, J.J. Redick, Derrick Favors, and Josh Hart giving New Orleans Pelicans fans their first chance to see them in home stripes, it offered a glimpse at the exciting potential of a revamped squad.

Of course, the fans were thrilled to see their franchise cornerstone player Jrue Holiday, which he matched with thrills of his own, linking with Frank Jackson for a very silky dish-and-a-three.

Perhaps what people will remember best from the fan event and practice will be Nickeil Alexander-Walker singing the iconic dorm pop anthem, “A Thousand Miles” by Vanessa Carlton. He sold the heck out of it, too, belting away down on one knee. Legendary stuff there, folks.

One season ago, the New Orleans Pelicans finished 25th in the league in attendance. Considering yesterday evening’s event was so well attended, it does provide some optimism about this team’s ability to draw fans in the future.

Zion seems central to the interest in the team; the organization’s ticketing department sold a record 12,000-plus sets of season tickets after the rookie was selected atop the 2019 NBA Draft.

Next up for the New Orleans Pelicans is their preseason opener against the Atlanta Hawks, tomorrow, Oct. 7 at State Farm Arena. The Pelicans won’t have another chance to play for a home crowd until their third preseason game, Oct. 11 against the Utah Jazz. It’ll be interesting to see how well the crowd turns out for the preseason draw.