Zion Williamson not closing games for Pelicans seems silly

Posting another impressive outing on Friday against Denver, the Pelicans collapsed as soon as Zion Williamson exited the game, drawing fan angst.

Last night, the New Orleans Pelicans fell to 0-2 with Zion Williamson as a healthy member of their roster, taking a 106-113 loss to the Denver Nuggets, though neither team lacked much rhythm throughout the contest.

Everything is a little weird on the court for the New Orleans Pelicans, as many of the team’s key players currently look a little lost.

It took Zion approximately three total four-minute career bursts to get comfortable in the NBA, as the rookie has been nothing short of gaudy since he ripped the San Antonio Spurs to shreds in the fourth quarter of his debut.

Playing a little under 21 minutes last night, Williamson posted 15 points, 6 rebounds, 1 emphatic block, and shot 7-of-9 from the floor. Not only that, but he was eating Nikola Jokić‘s lunch inside the painted area.

Not only was he playing well, but the Pelicans were also way better when they had Zion Williamson on the floor, as he finished +16 for the game, the highest plus/minus of any player on either team.

Just as the team started to mount a fourth-quarter run, the team was forced to pull Williamson from the floor with just over seven minutes left in the contest. From there, the team’s missed free throws (18-for-30) and sloppy turnovers (17) ate them alive until Denver took home the win.

On The Ringer’s Friday episode of The Ryen Russillo Show, Russillo noted that it seemed kind of backwards to make Zion Williamson go back to the bench when he had a chance to win his team a big game.

Noted in Russillo’s comments was his frustration in seeing the Pelicans have to pull their best player on the floor, mentioning that pulling LeBron James, Kevin Durant, and other star scorers out of the game in the biggest moment.

After the game, Alvin Gentry once again stated that despite the frustration with his lack of availability, this is seemingly the only option for the team.

Gentry says all the right things about managing Williamson’s health through this minute restriction. He knows it’s his job to keep Williamson healthy and listen to the advice from the medical staff, otherwise, he’d be canned.

However, it just doesn’t make a lot of sense not to let this guy help you close some games, especially with your front office and team clearly showing interest in making a push for the playoffs.

Right now, the Pelicans are really doing their rookie centerpiece as disservice by not calling his name to help him close games.

Seemingly, Brandon Ingram is feeling the lack of comfort on the floor as much as anyone, as the season-long star has withered the last two games, averaging 17 points, 3.5 assists, 2.5 rebounds, and shooting 27.3% from the floor, while only hitting 23.1% from three.

All season long, Ingram has made his money in late-game situations with the Pelicans, but with him feeling out of sync, the team desperately needs another ‘A’ scoring plan on the floor.

While Ingram has struggled (though we have reason to believe it’s just in the short term), Zion Williamson continues to look like the real deal.

Through two games, the rookie is averaging 18.5 points, 6.5 rebounds, and shooting 75% from the floor with the team playing 21.1 points per 100 possessions better with him on the floor in the limited sample size.

Even if it means his starting job is off the table, Zion Williamson needs to be closing games for the New Orleans Pelicans. He’s not afraid of the moment, and the Pelicans staff needs to recognize this team’s need for wins.

The New Orleans Pelicans are starting to run out of time for making a run at the last seed in the Western Conference Playoffs. Losing two games in a row certainly hurts their cause, but just having Zion Williamson on the floor is a huge addition to their battle for that seed.