Zion Well On His Way To Becoming King Of New Orleans

When the draft lottery sent Zion Williamson to New Orleans remember how a bunch of people thought he was unhappy about it?

That was pretty off.

We learned yesterday that he and his stepdad had talked about the Pelicans as an ideal spot for Williamson and the only thing sweeter than his taking to the city is how it is taking to him. It’s like Insta-bond.

So when he was asked to dedicate a basketball court he was happy to do it and won over even more people.

The night after the draft, he told The Advocate that “[s]omething in my gut told me then, already, that this is my home. I’m here to stay. Just this family environment, the family feel of how a city comes together for stuff like this. I think you’ll see me at a lot of stuff like this.”

If he’s bonding with New Orleans like he bonded with Duke, the city is about to have one long, rolling hardwood Mardi Gras.

• ‘I’m a simple guy:’ Zion Williamson preparing himself for life in the NBA