When you see a delay during an NBA game this season, your mind automatically goes to the worst case scenario: someone tested positive for COVID and the game is about to be postponed. Fortunately for everyone involved in the New Orleans Pelicans’ victory over the Indiana Pacers 114-113 on Friday, the game was postponed for a much more enjoyable reason.
Before the start of the third quarter, the action was halted for at least five minutes, according to Nat Newell of the Indianapolis Star, while the maintenance staff at Bankers Life Fieldhouse adjusted one of the baskets. what’s wrong with that? It turns out that Zion Williamson damaged the rim in an attempt to bury during the Pelicans’ final possession in the first half.
As you can see below, the attempt to bury was not even three out of 10 on Zion’s ferocity scale, but the sheer strength of his muscular, 284-pound body pulling down the ledge for that extra split the second was too much for the circular piece of orange metal handle. By the way, great props for the big guy from Pacers, Goga Bitadze, for putting his life in danger by challenging the dunk.
Perhaps Williamson felt bad for causing the delay, as he performed relatively poorly in the second half, scoring six points while going 0 to 3 in field goal attempts and making three turns while the Pacers bench played the entire fourth period and almost achieved a return victory. That said, Zion finished with 18 points and five assists, continuing what has been a dominant season for the second-year striker.
Overall No. 1 choice in the 2019 draft averages 23.5 points and 7.4 rebounds per game with 59 percent pitches, numbers that could give Williamson his first All-Star selection in the coming weeks. More importantly, he is playing 32.7 minutes per game and looks healthy after a rookie campaign full of injuries.
But with the additional minutes, there is an additional risk for any and all hoops in the building.