Zion Williamson has impressed in his first two NBA games. However, as good as the rookie has been, the New Orleans Pelicans have gone 0-2. On Thursday, New Orleans fell 113-106 against the Denver Nuggets.
In the game, Williamson recorded 15 points and six rebounds in just 22 minutes. However, as a team, the Pelicans were outrebounded by 11. The Pelicans' effort on the boards would be questioned by Williamson after the loss.
“I’m not going to sit here and sugarcoat nothing. They outrebounded us. I don’t think we wanted it enough tonight. … It’s a game of two halves and we didn’t play both,” Williamson said.
The Nuggets trio of Nikola Jokic, Michael Porter Jr. and Torrey Craig combined for 32 rebounds and were constant menaces on the boards for New Orleans.
In his first two games, the No. 1 pick of the most recent draft is averaging 18.5 points, 6.5 rebounds, 1.5 assists while shooting an efficient 14-20 from the field.
With the loss, the Pelicans fell to 17-29 on the season which puts them in 12th place in the Western Conference. On the other hand, Denver improves to 31-14 which is good for fourth place in the conference.
Throughout the season, New Orleans has actually fared pretty well on the boards. The team ranks 13th in the NBA in rebounds per game averaging 45.8 rebounds per contest. The team also ranks in the top 10 of the league in offensive rebounding.
Veteran big man Derrick Favors has been the team's top man on the boards this season as the 28-year-old is averaging a career-high 10.1 rebounds per game in only 24.2 minutes per contest.
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