NBA.com is part of Warner Media, LLCs Turner Sports & Entertainment Digital Network, *Translations are limited to select pages, Friday's notebook: Russell Westbrook's outside shooting woes, Friday's notebook: Heat picking up quality wins, 10 Numbers to Know from the 2019-20 season thus far, Friday's notebook: Kawhi Leonard struggling to finish at basket, Series preview: What to expect in Warriors-Lakers, 5 takeaways from Warriors' Game 7 victory, 5 takeaways from Heat's Game 1 win over Knicks, Curry sets Game 7 record with 50 points vs. Kings, Brooks fined $25K for violating interview rules, all of his minutes at the five on Wednesday, alongside DeMarcus Cousins and Emeka Okafor, fifth in the league with 13.2 points in the paint per game, the best mark among 36 players with at least 200 restricted-area attempts, ranks 43rd among 47 players with at least 100 mid-range attempts, games that were within five points in the last five minutes, No team has played more clutch games than the Oklahoma City Thunder. FROM @EliasSports: Zion is the youngest player in NBA history with consecutive games of 30 points on at least 70% FG pct. Of the 668 games the league has played through Thursday, 344 (51%) have been within five points in the last five minutes. Even if a team thinks theyhave one player who has a decent shot at hanging with him, they almost certainly don't have two, making switching against the Pelicans adangerous game. David Griffin and Pelicans management put players such as Steven Adams and Eric Bledsoe around Zion this year, which does not create a lot of spacing. Zion But watching Valaninas this year underscores how he hasnt been same force he was during his first season with the Pelicans. While McCollum is dealing with a nagging finger injury that he has downplayed for weeks, he still needs to be much more consistent for the Pelicans offense to gain some traction. 1, Defensive Player Ladder: Turner climbs to No. Hes also shooting 43 percent on midrange jumpers, which would be the lowest number of his career. You can e-mail him here, find his archive here and follow him on Twitter. There are also times when the Pels need a perimeter player who can get into the paint and collapse the defense. All nine of their clutch shots were 3-point attempts and they made just two of the nine. Williamson has recorded eight 30+ point performances without a basket outside the paint. Its how Zion ended up with 32 points against Gobert and the Jazz. Any time youre down, especially an All-Star like him, youre going to miss him and we did tonight, Barrett said. Back-to-back bad closeouts from Zion leads to five quick points for Utah. While the Mavs have scored 116.4 points per 100 possessions (No. The truth is, his ceiling is high and his bag is deep, but until NBA defenses find a way to limit him in the paint, we wont see him digging too deeply. The Lakers win in Brooklyn on Thursday was the first game that either JaVale McGee (who was out with an illness) or Dwight Howard has missed this season, and the two centers have combined to average a little more than 37 minutes per game. So the Pelicans will sometimes try to set those screens as low as possible, like at the dotted circle , A low screen can make it tougher for the defender to get under and give Williamson a runway , Switching the ball screen can keep Williamson from being able to get downhill, but it can also put him in a matchup he prefers , Williamson has also shown an ability to read his own defender. Since then, the Pelicans are 26th in offensive rating, 14th in points in the paint and have been held under 100 points more times (six) than theyve reached 120 (five). With a full season officially under New Orleans Pelicans star Zion Williamsons belt, we got to see the dominance that made him a viral sensation in high school, executed at the NBA level. While Ingrams two-month absence due to a toe injury has been the main cause of his rocky season, there have been some issues even when he does take the court. For example, Zion as a point forward bringing the ball up, which drags opposing bigs out into space, then Zion blows right by them. Playing with a poorly built roster, under his second coach (who has since been fired), at just 20 years old, Williamson put up historic numbers averaging 27.0 points on 61 percent shooting. And he's getting better at reading defences. Good luck making up those 45 points and getting a win. The rookie takes over the top spot as he continues to provide a steady hand to Sacramento's playoff push. He will take what is given to him; often that has been the basket. Jonathan Bachman / Getty Images Back in the spring, after he averaged 26 points per They averaged 124 points in that series behind Butlers 37.6 per game, but they pulled this one out with old-fashioned defense and rebounding that has always worked so well before for them at this time of year. And all of Williamsons minutes at the five were at the start of the second and fourth quarters, when Ingram was on the bench. The problem is those shots have not been falling for him as much this year. Williamsons spectacular performance in the Pelicans 119-118 win over the Timberwolves Wednesday night encapsulated what makes him different from anything NBA fans have seen. Were trying to get him to up that to four or five. But since Jan. 1, Ingram is averaging 3.6 turnovers per game, a significant jump from the 2.7 he averaged last season. This isnt a huge surprise after Thibodeau said on Saturday that Randle had not gone through a full practice and had done some shooting, lifting, and pool cardio. Zion Williamson Zion No motive offered after shooting killed Bremerton man - Kitsap Sun Not only can he play through contact, but he can also absorbcontact and adjust while he's midair. And much of that late-game success is due to their success from beyond the arc. (To boot, many of his "unassisted baskets" were putbacks). He is a New Orleans native. Father Time Is Chasing Down LeBron - The Ringer December feels like a lifetime ago for the New Orleans Pelicans. The things Zion Williamson does he does as well he does VERY well. All betting content is intended for an audience ages 21+. But among 163 players with at least 100 shots both inside and outside, only Jabari Parker has a bigger differential between his field goal percentage in the paint and his effective field goal percentage from outside the paint. Its his field goal percentage. With Jimmy Butler hobbled late by an ankle injury, Miami gets big performances from Kyle Lowry and Kevin Love to take the series opener in New York. However, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reports Randle is likely out (which means hes out). His passing chops caught my eye early in his rookie season and he's shown real signs of improvement this season. Zion Smart stuff.). It's worth noting that Williamson was the Your default site has been set for 7 days, Stat Just Happened: Zion Williamson is dominating the paint in a way we haven't seen since Shaquille O'Neal, Shaquille O'Neal-type force of nature with a point guard skill set. Kevon Looney's historically elite rebounding provided separation in a winner-take-all Game 7. Copyright 2023 Sporting News Holdings Limited. Including his preseason minutes, New Orleans is a plus-52 in 54:03 with Williamson at center. Dyson is really good with the ball in his hands making decisions. He doesnt shoot well outside of 15 feet, but remains an efficient offensive player, because he ranks fifth in free throw rate (54 attempts per 100 shots from the field) among the 251 players with at least 200 field goal attempts. 8 seed to beat a No. Stan Van Gundy introduced the NBA world to Point Zion this past season. The answer is partially because his rotating head coaches are still learning how to use him. a constant gripe of head coach Willie Green, https://cdn.theathletic.com/app/uploads/2023/03/17040208/CJ-drop-off.mp4, https://cdn.theathletic.com/app/uploads/2023/03/17040230/CJ-corner.mp4, when McCollum shares the court with Daniels, are outscored by 2.7 points per 100 possessions, have a staggering plus-19.5 net rating this year, has been the main cause of his rocky season, https://cdn.theathletic.com/app/uploads/2023/03/17040300/BI-TO-2.mp4, https://cdn.theathletic.com/app/uploads/2023/03/17040325/BI-TO.mp4. Williamson has recorded eight 30+ point performances without a basket outside the paint. Breaking down stats and film from around the NBA, including a look at Zion's improved ball-handling skills. The Warriors now move on to a TNT/Disney television executives dream Curry vs. LeBron James. Williamson's body control is incredible. But the ways in which the Pelicans have achieved that goal have changed. Zion Williamson nearing Shaquille O'Neal's record, posts another 8-seeded Heat kept rolling after barely reaching the postseason, beating the New York Knicks 108-101 on Sunday in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals.