Zion Williamson has enjoyed a phenomenal freshman season at Duke that has earned plenty of pub because of his highlight-reel dunks and freakish feats of athleticism, but that's not how he wants to be labeled.
After a career-high 30-point night in the Blue Devils' 87-65 victory vs. Wake Forest on Tuesday, Williamson rejected the classification of being a dunker -- despite his obvious talents at, well, dunking -- and offered up a new narrative he wishes people to accept about his game.
"I kind of hate being classified as a dunker," Williamson said via ESPN.com. "Coach [Mike Krzyzewski] wouldn't have recruited me if I was just a dunker. But I guess people on the outside don't understand that. I can't play to impress other people. I'm playing to get better for myself and my teammates and hopefully make a run for a national championship."
Williamson showed Tuesday that he can do more than just dunk. He became the first Duke freshman ever to record a stat line of 30 points, 10 rebounds, five assists and four steals. He even nearly doubled the number of 3-pointers made on the season, hitting 3 of 4 attempts on the night to help Duke skate to an 87-65 road win over Wake Forest. Williamson was 13 for 16 from the floor vs. the Demon Deacons.
"Coach is always telling me to shoot the ball, but if it's not falling, then I'm not going to," said Williamson, who Tuesday air-balled his second 3-point attempt in two games. "But after I shot that one over the rim, they were like, 'Z, shoot another one,' and I got it right back and made it. I think my confidence from three is getting a lot better."
Williamson is averaging 20.9 points, 9.5 rebounds and 2.4 assists on the season in leading Duke to a No. 1 ranking and a 13-1 overall record on the season. He's the projected No. 1 pick in this year's NBA Draft.
