MELBOURNE — The New Orleans Pelicans got their pre-season underway in front of a sell-out 14,800-strong crowd at Rod Laver Arena, and all eyes were on Zion Williamson.
In his first competitive basketball game since March, the two-time All-Star showed exactly what kind of dominance he's capable of when fully healthy, with an impressive cameo in the Pelicans' 107-97 win over Melbourne United.
Williamson had 15 points in 16 minutes in the first half on 5-of-8 shooting from the field, adding five assists, two rebounds, and two steals, before sitting out the second half.
Grabs the board.
— NBA (@NBA) October 3, 2025
Passes to his teammate.
Throws down the alley-oop!
When Zion Williamson is at the rim... watch out 😳 pic.twitter.com/NMT1OgWoiB
"I felt great. I felt great," Williamson said post-game on how his body felt after their first hitout.
"It felt like as soon as I caught my second wind, I was done for the night. But I had a great time.
"The fans were great and it's always great playing a game of basketball."
While he gave the fans exactly what they came for, high-flying dunks, transition buckets, and non-stop muscling his way through the paint, in the final minutes of regulation, they wanted more, with chants of "We want Zion" reigning down from the stands.
Zion Williamson on hearing chants of "We want Zion" overseas during the @PelicansNBA game today:
— NBA (@NBA) October 3, 2025
"It just shows you the reach of the game of basketball." pic.twitter.com/EWMExBxje1
"I've been saying it a lot. I feel embraced, and I love it. I love it," he added.
The Pelicans will be back on court in two days time to face South East Melbourne Phoenix, and while they erred on the side of caution with Williamson's involvement tonight, he's eyeing a bigger role in Sunday's matchup
"Hopefully, they give me more minutes," Williamson said.
"You know, preseason, you know, I usually go through the same kind of routine. But I can't help but be really excited to get more minutes just to play in front of these fans."
With his off-season body transformation the talk of the summer, Williamson's game did the talking, leaving Pelicans head coach Willie Green impressed from his first game of the pre-season.
"He came out and got started right away," Green said.
"I loved his activity defensively, getting steals, deflections, and then getting out on the open floor, playing in fastbreak opportunities.
"When the game slows down, we know we can put the ball in his hands in the post or in the high post, and he makes plays for his teammates or for himself."