No. 1 overall pick Zion Williamson will reportedly start in his official NBA debut with the New Orleans Pelicans on Wednesday night against the San Antonio Spurs, according to Andrew Lopez of ESPN.
The Pelicans will monitor his minutes against the Spurs but have not placed a hard minutes restriction on him, executive vice president of basketball operations David Griffin said last week. The team will play Williamson in short bursts in order to keep him fresh.
Griffin told reporters last Wednesday that he anticipated Williamson will make his official debut against the Spurs, which is the last team Williamson faced in the preseason before suffering a knee injury. Williamson has been seen in recent weeks practicing, which has raised the hype for his debut.
Once news of his return surfaced, it was announced on Friday that ESPN will televise his debut game. Including the Pelicans’ game against the Spurs, four out of the team’s next seven games will air either on ABC, ESPN or TNT with Williamson back on the court.
Without Williamson this season, the Pelicans are 12th in the Western Conference with a 17-27 record. After losing 13 consecutive games from Nov. 23 to Dec. 17, the Pelicans have posted an 11-5 record, tied for the fifth-most wins over that span.
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