With the New Orleans Pelicans missing Zion Williamson's services on Wednesday night in their game against the Washington Wizards, the onus to carry the offense fell on Brandon Ingram's shoulders. And Ingram, much like he was to end the 2022-23 season, welcomed this responsibility with open arms. He ended the Pelicans' 142-122 win over the Wizards with a season-high 40 points on 14-23 shooting from the field and 11-12 from the foul line, and basketball purists will love the fact that he made just one triple en route to an explosive scoring night.

Ingram, whenever he gets it going offensively, can be tough to stop, especially when he has the ballhandling chops to get to his spots almost every trip down on offense. In fact, the 26-year old small forward continues to ascend to the point where Pelicans head coach Willie Green sees some similarities between him and Allen Iverson, the Hall of Fame guard whom Green got to play with for three and a half seasons.

“Oh for sure. There ARE some similarities with AI and BI. Number one, they have a knack for scoring in all different kinds of ways — they can shoot the ball, they can attack the basket, they can score in the midrange, they can get to the free throw line,” Green said in his presser following the Pelicans' victory, per Brandon “Scoop B” Robinson.

Of course, Allen Iverson is a different animal, as he was able to dominate offensively even though he was barely six-foot tall. Iverson also had a deeper ballhandling bag than Brandon Ingram, and he was also more explosive when attacking the rim.

But what makes them so similar is that they can score proficiently from all three levels, and their mere presence elevates the floor of a team's offense. Surely, a younger version of Ingram will be proud of the player he has become.

“With B.I., it’s funny you say that because Allen was one of his favorite players growing up. So, you can see some similarities there; obviously AI is a Hall of Famer, but Brandon is an incredible scorer; he can give you buckets like you said in a ton of different ways,” Green added.

For the Pelicans to continue their ascent in the Western Conference standings, Brandon Ingram will have to sustain this level of play moving forward even with Zion Williamson active.