Zion Williamson

Zion Williamson did not decide to run the clock out and instead made a statement with a 360 windmill against the Phoenix Suns on Friday.

made sure the rest of their Pelicans teammates weren’t close to anyone from the Suns while others like Suns guard Cam Payne kept the conversation going from a distance. That’s when New Orleans guard Jose Alvarado spoke back to Paul, and once Green stepped in to make sure the two guards remained separated, both benches made their way over for a kerfuffle. grabbed the rebound and threw it ahead to Zion Williamson, who did not decide to run the clock out and instead made a statement with a 360 windmill.

Williamson had a game-high 35 points in the Pelicans' 128-117 win over the Suns.

and exploded toward the rim for a 360 windmill slam dunk. Don't miss a second of NBA action this season with NBA League Pass. Catch games live and on demand.

New Orleans Pelicans star Zion Williamson angered the Phoenix Suns with a controversial move at the end of Friday's game.

Williamson’s controversial dunk is now further stoking the flames of this rivalry, which we will not have to wait long to see again as the two teams also play this coming Sunday in New Orleans. Speaking during his postgame press conference after the dust had settled, Williamson, who missed all of last season with a foot injury, acknowledged that the move was a bit uncharacteristic for him. Williamson and the New Orleans Pelicans won an important game at home against the rival Phoenix Suns.

With New Orleans up by nine, Phoenix took exception to Williamson's decision not to dribble out the clock.

[New Orleans Pelicans](https://www.cbssports.com/nba/teams/NO/new-orleans-pelicans/)' 128-117 win over the [Phoenix Suns](https://www.cbssports.com/nba/teams/PHO/phoenix-suns/) on Friday night. Not only did the Suns and Pelicans tussle in last year's playoffs, but they've also been tussling at the top of the Western Conference standings so far this season. Back to the dunk, and what might've led up to it, after the game Williamson said that Phoenix eliminating New Orleans last postseason in a six-game, first-round series was on his mind. [Chris Paul](/nba/players/555969/chris-paul/) and Pelicans guard [Jose Alvarado](/nba/players/2892395/jose-alvarado/) seemed to get into a bit of a shouting/shoving match, and then a whole lot more shouting and shoving ensued, though it appears no punches or significant blows were thrown. "But I was in that locker room and my brothers were down because the Suns sent us home last year. [NBA](/nba/) guard Antonio Daniels saying, "No, no, no!"

Pelicans star Zion Williamson admitted that his late-game 360-degree dunk in their blowout win against the Suns was "out of character."

… but that was out of character for me. “That was a little out of character for me. After all, in such situations, it’s an unwritten rule to let the clock expire instead of scoring as a respect to opponents.

The New Orleans Pelicans 128-117 win against the Phoenix Suns ended up in controversy as Zion Williamson made a 360-degree slam just before the final buzzer ...

"When I was in that locker room [last year], my brothers were down because Suns sent us home. At that moment, I got carried away. I admit that." I got carried away a little bit. If they did the same thing, we wouldn't have a problem," added Williamson. "I missed all last year.

Zion Williamson capped off the New Orleans Pelicans' big win against the rival Suns last night with an emphatic dunk, which didn't sit well with Phoenix.

As a fan, this is the kind of stuff I pay to see, and if CP3 or one of the other Suns can do a windmill 360 dunk to close out a win against the Pelicans, I say go for it. Zion Williamson was trying to entertain the home crowd that was amazing all night. He had the chance but instead chose to try and keep scoring and the Pels were just returning the favor. And even if it was, Zion has absolutely nothing to apologize for. Wasn’t this the same guy who kicked Jose in the nethers? “That was a little out of character for me…I got carried away a little bit.

CP3 may have a point about Zion's last-second 360 windmill, but NBA Twitter doesn't want to hear it.

The first is anti-CP3, and they like to point out that grudges seem to occur with the Point God more than his fans would like to admit. Alvarado hounding Paul is exactly how CP3 used to get on the nerves of opposing guards, and he and the entire Suns team are coming off like that friend who can hurl insults all day but can’t handle return fire. Over this six-game win streak, he’s 65-97 from the field, averaging 29, 9, and 5, and getting to the line 10 times per game while hitting 75 percent of his freebies. The team with the second-highest point differential in the West is Phoenix, who New Orleans beat Friday night, 128-117. The NBA season is nearly one-third over, and the team with the best record in the Western Conference is… They have the highest average point differential of any team in the conference by almost two points, outscoring teams by 7.1 points per outing.

New Orleans Pelicans star Zion Williamson sent a message with a game-ending dunk in Friday's 128-117 win over the Phoenix Suns: The Suns seemingly took ...

17 for the final matchup of the year between the two sides. I admit that. 1 seed in the West. Williamson has been a difference-maker upon his return, averaging a team-high 24.5 points per game to go with 7.2 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game. Of course, the two teams play again on Sunday before traveling to Phoenix on Dec. New Orleans Pelicans star Zion Williamson sent a message with a game-ending dunk in Friday's 128-117 win over the Phoenix Suns: