Zion Williamson scored 13 points in 15 minutes on Tuesday night as he made his long-awaited return to action for the New Orleans Pelicans. This was the first time the 22-year-old took the court in more than 500 days and Zion definitely made up for lost time in his limited run.

ESPN's Stephen A Smith is all in on the Zion hype train. So much so, that the renowned broadcaster declared just how highly he thinks of the Pelicans this coming season.

Smith made it clear that he still sees the Los Angeles Clippers as the biggest threat to the defending champs Golden State Warriors. However, Stephen A also stated that we should all keep our eyes on New Orleans this year (h/t ClutchPoints on Twitter):

“I have the New Orleans Pelicans as the No. 1 sleeper in the entire NBA,” Smith said. “The Pelicans can end up in the Conference Finals. The Pelicans can end up in the Finals. They got a crew… They ain't scared of anybody.”

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Smith talked up the make-up of the Pels' current roster, which will be led by a returning Zion Williamson. According to the ESPN anchor, he believes that with Zion in the mix, New Orleans could have defeated the Phoenix Suns in the first round of the playoffs last season. This year, the Pels could make even more waves:

“Zion Williamson, if he stays healthy, I'm telling you right now. New Orleans is a huge threat,” Stephen A said.

Pelicans fans are going to love this. Could this finally be their year? This is going to be Zion's fourth season in the NBA, and as Smith said, so long as he's healthy, it would be foolish to count him and New Orleans out.

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