Zion had 25 points in his first game in over a year. There is a time and a place for it.
Despite praise from his teammates and coach, Zion Williamson said his regular-season return to the New Orleans Pelicans was just a "decent starter performance."
There is a lot of room for improvement. I don't know my teammates yet. We're getting real in-game reps. I'm looking forward to growing.
The numbers suggested a lot more than that. He had 25 points, nine rebound, and four steal in the win over the Nets.
He was praised by his own team and the opposition.
"It was like he didn't miss a beat," Willie Green said. He picked up where he left off.
Kevin was not surprised.
He looked good to me. I got up 22 shots, nine rebound, 25 points. It's normal for him at this point.
It was a "breath of fresh air" to get back on the floor after a broken foot. When the starting lineups were announced, he finally felt like things were returning to normal after missing the appeal of being in an away arena.
All 11 of his baskets came from inside the paint. In 86 career games, he's had at least 20 points in the paint in 45 of them. The only player with more games with 20 or more points in the paint since the start of the season is Antetokounmpo.
It was the first time many of his new teammates had seen him since he last played in a regular season game. Only two of the players who played against the Nets had played in a regular-season game with the same player.
The starting five didn't get to see much in the preseason because of minor injuries.
It's the first time we've played for more than 20 minutes. It was nice to see the chemistry between us.
He had a team-high seven rebound and five assist. He had 21 points and 6 assists.
With three players who can dominate the box score, Green has stressed ball movement more this season. All three players have the same goal in mind.
He said that he said it because he meant it. We all have the same goal, and that's to win." When you want to win, you put away your personal goals. Whatever I have to do, they have to do to win.
The game was a good start for the three and it will be easier for them on the offensive end.
It's easier to play the game when you have smart players around. It was good to see a lot of one-on-ones that they couldn't be in a lot of help on the defensive end, because we had different guys that can make players on the basketball floor.
He admitted that he was still getting used to it.
"Yes, there are some shots where I'm like, 'Well that's good' and when it rolls out, I'm like, 'No way'." "My teammates are with me." They told me to keep attacking and be myself. My confidence is going to stay high because they are in my corner.
Ben Simmons made his regular-season Nets debut on Wednesday after not playing last season for Philadelphia or Brooklyn. He played 23 minutes against the New Orleans and finished with four points, five rebound and five assists, as well as five foul outs.
Steve Nash thinks he's rusty. He hasn't played in over a year. He's still learning. Ben is going through a process. You guys have heard me say it many times. It's not easy to see a glimpse of the player we know he is and can be. We're here to support him, we're here to coach him up, and we're trying to get him to a place where he can play at a higher level.
Simmons said that he was too excited. It was nice to be out there. We know why we lost as a first game. The reasons we lost were many and we can fix them. That isn't us as a team. It was good to get that one out of the way because I think there is a lot of nerves out there.
Nick Friedell was a contributor.
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