Zion Williamson Dominant, Coby White Shows Promise as Pelicans Beat Bulls

The New Orleans Pelicans erased a 23-point deficit in the fourth quarter to beat the Chicago Bulls 127-125 and remain undefeated in the preseason Wednesday night at Chicago's United Center.

Rookie No. 1 pick Zion Williamson scored a game-high 29 points in his second preseason showing.

But the comeback was led by the bench, including fellow rookie first-rounder Nickeil Alexander-Walker, center Jahlil Okafor and guard Josh Hart.

Alexander-Walker scored the winning points at the free-throw line with 57.9 seconds left in the fourth quarter.

As a team, the Pelicans shot 8-of-10 from three in the fourth quarter.

It was a promising showing from Chicago's young core, despite the result, as guard Zach LaVine led Bulls scorers with 28 points on 10-of-16 shooting from the field and 4-of-7 from three. Rookie point guard Coby White, taken seventh overall in June, contributed 13 points, three assists and three rebounds in 27 minutes off the bench.

From a team perspective, the Bulls' 38 assists were more than they had in any single game all of last season (h/t 670 The Score's Jeff Mangurten).

Notable Performances 

Pelicans F Zion Williamson: 29 points, four rebounds, four assists, one steal

Pelicans PG Jrue Holiday: 10 points, four assists, three rebounds, two steals

Pelicans PG Lonzo Ball: two points, nine assists, four rebounds, four steals

Pelicans G Nickeil Alexander-Walker: 13 points, seven assists, two rebounds, one steal

Bulls PG Zach LaVine: 28 points, three rebounds, one assist, one steal

Bulls PG Coby White: 13 points, three assists, three rebounds

Bulls F Otto Porter Jr.: 16 points, eight assists, seven rebounds, one block

Bulls PG Tomas Satoransky: 11 points, eight assists, five rebounds, two steals

Zion Williamson Showcases Mobility 

The calling card for Zion Williamson to this point in his very young career, dating back to his season at Duke, has been dunks that make viewers ask, "How did he even do that?"

The rookie top overall pick was on the other end of a nice Lonzo Ball alley-oop pass in transition in the first quarter and had a 360-degree slam in the third:

But the main takeaway from Williamson's performance should be his unique ability and versatility at 6'6" and 280 pounds. The 19-year-old illustrated that in various ways against the Bulls, including several crossover dribbles and creative assists.

Williamson displayed efficiency as well, going 12-of-13 from the field in 27 minutes of action:

And Ball was the main Pelican opening up the offense with a game-high nine assists. 

Coby White Poised to Bump Kris Dunn Down the Bulls' Rotation

Bulls rookie seventh overall pick Coby White followed up his 12-point outing in Chicago's preseason opener Monday night with 13 points and three assists Wednesday night. 

His impact on the game was palpable outside of scoring, as he assisted or scored 12 of the Bulls' first 16 points in the second quarter:

As a result, the likelihood is growing that White takes minutes away from Kris Dunn at point guard once the regular season begins. The expectation is for 27-year-old Tomas Satoransky to start at point, but White has emerged as a more than capable backup and, in turn, complement to LaVine:

Dunn posted two points, five rebounds and five assists in 23 minutes off the bench.

What's Next? 

The Bulls will seek their first preseason win at Indiana on Friday beginning at 7 p.m. ET. The Pelicans will look to remain unbeaten when hosting the Utah Jazz on Friday at 8 p.m. ET. 

New Orleans will open the 2019-20 NBA regular season on Oct. 22 at the reigning champion Toronto Raptors, while the Bulls' regular season will begin on Oct. 23 at the Charlotte Hornets.