Continuing a recent stretch of inconsistent play, the Phoenix Suns were narrowly defeated 129-124 on the road in New Orleans. The Pels have been quite a formidable opponent for NBA teams this year, boasting an 18-8 record and sitting atop the league’s Western Conference.
The first 47 minutes
With Devin Booker still nursing a hamstring injury, 25+ point efforts from both Mikal Bridges and DeAndre Ayton were not enough to put the red-hot Pels away. Phoenix had seemingly no answer for Zion Williamson, who shot 67% from the floor and tallied 35 on the night.
In his third game back since early November, Chris Paul put together a very good passing night, tossing out 11 dimes with just three turnovers. However, his offensive game struggled mightily, recording just six points on 10 shots.
Relying on Paul as a volume scorer in year 18 is simply not realistic, but Monty Williams certainly expects him to shoot the ball with far more consistency than he showed last night.
The final seconds
With a 9-point lead going into the final Phoenix possession of the game, a Suns miss was collected by Larry Nance Jr. and chucked across the timeline to a wide-open Zion Williamson. With around five seconds to play and a nearly double-digit lead, few expected Williamson to do what he did next.
Instead of dribbling out the clock, Zion put an exclamation mark on his big night, entrancing the home crowd with a 360-degree windmill dunk. Phoenix players did not take kindly to this gesture, as a gathering developed at half-court immediately after the final buzzer.
This decision by Williamson was a peculiar one for several reasons. First and foremost, this type of behavior seems quite uncharacteristic of Zion, who is known as a relatively respectful and laid-back individual. Williamson acknowledged this in his post-game interview, citing his rationale for the dunk as the fact that Phoenix eliminated the Pelicans from playoff contention one year ago.
The aftermath
If being seated atop the Western Conference wasn’t enough reason for Monty Williams to circle the Pelicans on the calendar, this recent stunt by Williamson most certainly will be. It seems incredibly premature for Zion to make such a statement.
Over the past two seasons, the Suns have finished top two in the West and have an NBA Finals run under their belts, whereas New Orleans has not broken .500 since the 2017-2018 campaign.
More specific to Williamson, the former Duke standout has played just over one full season’s worth of NBA…
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