No. 1 overall pick Zion Williamson made his official NBA debut on Wednesday night, recording 22 points in 18 minutes of work, including 17 straight during a three-minute stretch in the fourth quarter.
The debut of Williamson was seen by 2.357 million viewers, which was up 88% from a comparable game last year. The debut brought ESPN a 1.6 rating. The performance by the Williamson offered a glimpse of what he can bring to the New Orleans Pelicans once he is back into game shape and has a few more games under his belt.
Hall of Famer Michael Jordan was among those impressed with his debut game, calling it a glimpse of what we can expect to see from Williamson in the future on Friday as his Charlotte Hornets played the Milwaukee Bucks in Paris, France.
I think what you saw the other night was a taste of what you’re going to see moving forward. He still has a lot to do but we think his passion for the game is coming through the way that he plays and I think that’s great for the league.
Of course, Williamson inked the richest annual shoe contract in NBA history with Jordan Brand prior to the season as he debuted a new Air Jordan XXXIV sneaker on Wednesday night. Jordan said his apparel company was fortunate to land Williamson.
We looked at Zion being an impact player that would bring energy to the game of basketball. We can do it with a lot of different factors and different ways of endorsement and marketing. It was a great opportunity for us. I imagine the league has quite a number of those people but we were very fortunate that he chose us and we look at every opportunity to expand to him the consumers and yet showcase his personality and basketball skills.
After losing a close matchup against the San Antonio Spurs on Wednesday, Williamson and the Pelicans return to action on Friday night against the Denver Nuggets.
Quotes provided by NBA PR
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