Jrue Holiday took one look around and realized Wednesday’s game will probably be like none other he’s experienced since coming to New Orleans in 2013.
“Just the amount of media here,” Holiday noted of the dozens of reporters attending Pelicans shootaround, which normally draws perhaps a handful of media members. “Honestly, (tonight’s game will feature) a lot of energy, a lot of anticipation and excitement. I know we’re excited to have him back. I know how hard it is to sit out. Just having him back is going to be fun.”
“Him” is obviously No. 1 overall draft pick Zion Williamson, who will appear in his first official NBA game vs. San Antonio (8:30 p.m. Central, ESPN, Fox Sports New Orleans, 100.3 FM), after the Duke University product excelled in four preseason contests prior to mid-October knee surgery.
New Orleans (17-27) is eager to get the left-handed forward back into the mix after three-plus months, having watched the 19-year-old dominate the exhibition slate. Asked what Williamson can do to most help the Pelicans as he eases back into the lineup, Holiday responded, “Be himself, honestly. Attack the paint. Get to the free throw line. If not, he’s getting to the rim. I don’t think anyone’s jumping with him. So just be him.”
“His role is to come out and have fun,” center Derrick Favors said of Williamson. “Just get the first game out of the way, the excitement out of the way and learn throughout the season, get his rhythm, get his conditioning, then wait until probably game 10 to judge him.
“He still has to get in NBA game shape, because he hasn’t played in a while. He has to get used to just playing with teammates and building his chemistry. That stuff takes a while.”
Other notes from Wednesday’s shootaround at the Ochsner Sports Performance Center:
Asked if he had any advice for Williamson to process some of the hype surrounding the rookie’s NBA debut, Holiday answered bluntly that he has nothing to compare it to from Holiday’s own experience.
“I’ve never been through anything like that, to be completely honest,” Holiday said. “He’s kind of been in a class of his own with that type of thing, or maybe with (Lonzo Ball) or (Brandon Ingram).” …
Favors (lower back soreness) is essentially a game-time decision for Wednesday’s game, having been listed as questionable on the injury report.
“We’ll see,” Favors said of his status vs. the Spurs. “I still have to go through some (physical activity) stuff (in pregame), but we’ll see how it goes.” …
It might get somewhat lost in the storylines surrounding Williamson’s debut, but the Pelicans are not losing sight of the fact that Wednesday’s game is a key one. New Orleans (17-27) is 3.5 games out of eighth place in the Western Conference and 3.0 games behind No. 9 San Antonio (19-23).
“It’s definitely an important game for us,” Favors said of the first head-to-head meeting with the Spurs in 2019-20. “We’re all fighting for that playoff spot. We’ve got to take it as an important game and just be ready to play.”
