Zion misses Pelicans’ opener due to illness

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NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Pelicans power forward Zion Williamson was scratched from the lineup for the club’s regular season opener against the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday night.
Pelicans coach Willie Green said Williamson was ill and not in attendance.
“He’s not feeling well,” Green said before the game. “He has been sick the last couple days … It’s just some type of virus.”
Without Williamson, Brandon Ingram stepped up with 33 points to lead New Orleans past Chicago 123-111. CJ McCollum added 23 for the Pelicans and newly-acquired guard Dejounte Murray had 14 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds.
Green said the club is hopeful Williamson, who averaged 22.9 points per game last season, will be able to rejoin the team when the Pelicans begin a four-game West Coast trip in Portland on Friday.
The 6-foot-6 Williamson, the first overall selection out of Duke in the 2019 NBA Draft, played in a career-high 70 games last season. But his absence on Wednesday night became his 207th missed regular season game in his injury-plagued pro career.
In the 184 NBA games he has played, Williamson has averaged 24.7 points per game.