Around the NBA: Zion Williamson’s debut, Powell “expected to have suffered torn Achilles”

Zion Williamson to play in first career NBA game

The day has finally come. After missing the entire regular season to this point due to injury, Zion Williamson is scheduled to make his NBA regular season debut in tonight’s game between the New Orleans Pelicans and the San Antonio Spurs.

Considering the pervasive presence of the NBA on social media and the overall star power within the league, the NBA’s popularity is booming like never before. Given the state of things, Zion Williamson’s debut very well may be the most eagerly anticipated in NBA history. The Duke product was the pre-draft consensus top player for the 2019 NBA Draft and the New Orleans Pelicans wasted no time spending their no. 1 overall pick on Zion. But his rise to fame started well before he was running to courts of Cameron Indoor Stadium. No, donning Duke Blue and being selected no. 1 only added to the legacy of Zion. Zion’s highlights have been shared across the internet since his high school days, with a leaping ability that seemed utterly inhuman. For those who have followed Zion since then, tonight’s match up has been a long time coming.

Dwight Powell has likely torn his Achilles

Dwight Powell of the Dallas Mavericks is expected to have suffered a torn right Achilles tendon, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic.

Just devastating for Powell and the Mavs. The 28-year-old big, who signed a 3-year, $33 million extension this past summer, is having one of the best seasons of his career. The Mavericks have performed 5.7 points better when Powell is on the court than off and Powell is converting at a career-high 66.4% eFG, per Cleaning The Glass.

Amar’e Stoudemire signs with Maccabi FOX Tel Aviv

Former NBA star Amar’e Stoudemire has agreed to a deal Maccabi FOX Tel Aviv, per Keith Smith of Yahoo! Sports and RealGM.

Maccabi FOX plays in the Israeli Premier League and the EuroLeague, which has a respectable level of talent. That said, I don’t see the 37-year-old Stoudemire playing his way back on to NBA radars.

It’s probably tough for Stoudemire to see what’s become of today’s NBA and not be able to suit up. Stoudemire was a bit ahead of his time as a big made for a fast-paced, guard-driven offense. He never was a floor stretcher, but he was a brutal screen setter, an unstoppable roll man, and an intimidating lob threat. I could easily imagine Mike D’Antoni running Harden-Stoudemire pick-and-rolls over and over again.