Zion Williamson and Ja Morant will play on a national holiday. It's perfect for the New Orleans Pelicans and Memphis Grizzlies.
The NBA released full 2019-20 schedules for all 30 teams in the NBA at 3:00 p.m. Eastern time on Monday, August 12. After an action-packed offseason, the schedule was highly anticipated and the schedule makers did not disappoint with a variety of banner matchups throughout the season.
One of the biggest draws for the 2019-20 season is the advent of new rookies – in particular the top two picks in the 2019 NBA Draft: Zion Williamson of the New Orleans Pelicans and Ja Morant of the Memphis Grizzlies.
The two top-flight prospects will first match up on Martin Luther King Day on January 20 on TNT per Will Guillory, the Pelicans beat writer for The Athletic:
The top two picks in this year's draft (Zion Williamson and Ja Morant) will face each other for the first time in an MLK Day (Jan. 20) matchup on TNT.
— Will Guillory (@WillGuillory) August 12, 2019
As you can see, the two top picks will not play each other until that game, and, by then, their rookie seasons should be well-established.
The Pelicans should be one of the biggest draws during the 2019-20 season, as the team is full of highly hyped former Lakers such as Brandon Ingram, Lonzo Ball and Josh Hart as well as multiple 2019 first round draft picks such as Zion, Jaxson Hayes (#8 overall) and Nickeil Alexander-Walker (#17 overall) – the latter of which were both obtained in the Pels’ trade with the Atlanta Hawks for the #4 overall pick.
With so many new high-profile faces, the Pels have a whopping 30 games on national television. The Grizz also have an impressive new team of young players led by Morant, Jaren Jackson Jr. and Summer League MVP Brandon Clarke.
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