Zion Williamson joins Michael Jordan in elite scoring company

Zion Williamson has dominated throughout his first 60 games of his career.

There was a reason why fans of NBA teams wanted to lose a ton of games two years ago. If they did and won the Draft Lottery, they would secure the services of Duke superstar Zion Williamson. While the New Orleans Pelicans did not have the worst record that season, they happened to have the right lottery ball and landed Williamson. Not even two years in, and the pick is already paying dividends.

According to ESPN, Williamson has scored 1,457 points in the first 60 games of his career, the second-most by a player since the NBA-ABA merger in 1976. The only player to score more points in that span was the one and only Michael Jordan with 1,664.

Zion Williamson has second-most points through first 60 career games since NBA-ABA merger

Williamson also joins Jordan in another category. Following his 23-point, 6-rebound performance in New Orleans’ 116-82 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday, Williamson now has 49 games in which he has scored more than 20 points through his first 60 contests. Jordan is the only player to rank ahead of him with 52, per ESPN Stats and Info.

After being drafted by the Pelicans, Williamson underwent arthroscopic surgery on his right knee to repair a torn meniscus prior to his rookie season, limiting him to 24 games. But in his sophomore year, Williamson has stepped up big time. He was named an All-Star Game reserve but was placed in the starting lineup for Team Kevin Durant after Philadelphia 76ers star center Joel Embiid was ruled out of the game after being deemed a close contact to a barber who tested positive for COVID-19.

Through 36 games, Williamson is averaging 25.5 points, 7.1 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game all while shooting 61.4 percent from the field.

Williamson was expected to be the next young star in the NBA, and he has not disappointed through the first 60 games of his career. If he is already being compared next to Jordan, then he is doing pretty well for himself.