Zion Williamson, who was promoted to starting role in All-Star Game, is trying to savor the moment

At 20 years old, Zion Williamson stepped into the starting lineup for Team Durant in the NBA’s midseason showcase game.

On Sunday, coach Doc Rivers elevated Williamson into his team’s starting lineup in place of Joel Embiid, who was sitting out because of a contact tracing issue. That meant Williamson became the fourth-youngest player ever to start in an All-Star Game. Only Kobe Bryant, Magic Johnson and LeBron James were younger.

“Whenever something like that pops up, especially with those names, man, it’s just an honor in itself,” Williamson said. “It sounds like a cliche answer, but that’s the truth. It’s just an honor to have my name in that conversation.”

Williamson scored his first basket of the game on an alley-oop. At halftime, he had eight points on 4-of-8 shooting. Team LeBron led Team Durant 100-80 after the first two quarters at State Farm Arena in Atlanta.

Williamson traveled there with a small group of family members. He was originally selected as a reserve on Team Durant but got bumped up into a starting role after Embiid came in close contact with a barber who tested positive for COVID-19. Ben Simmons, Embiid’s teammate on the Philadelphia 76ers, was also held out of the game because he was in close contact with the same barber.

The NBA elected to keep pushing forward with the All-Star Game during the pandemic. Commissioner Adam Silver called it a “made-for-TV event.” Roughly 1,000 people were in the stands. The Skills Challenge and 3-point Contest took place before tipoff.

The Pacers’ Domantas Sabonis defeated the Magic’s Nikola Vucevic in the Skills Challenge final, an unlikely matchup between two big men.

The Warriors’ Stephen Curry narrowly edged the Jazz’s Mike Conley in the finale of the 3-point contest. Curry needed to sink his final shot in the one-minute event to beat Conley, 28-27.

Williamson said what he remembered most about watching the All-Star Game as a kid was “who could make the most spectacular player.”

He got the start alongside Washington’s Bradley Beal, Brooklyn’s Kyrie Irving, Los Angeles’ Kawhi Leonard and Boston’s Jayson Tatum. Durant, the leading fan vote getter in the Eastern Conference and the player who put the team together, was out with a left hamstring strain.

Williamson said he found out about his first career All-Star selection when he was in the car with his mother. He was coming home from practice after getting tested for coronavirus, which is a daily ritual for NBA players.

“It’s a lot to take in for sure,” Williamson said. “The best thing I can do for sure is what my parents told me: Enjoy the moment. Don’t let a moment pass without enjoying it. I’m just going to enjoy it moment by moment.”

Williamson is putting together a spectacular second season. He is averaging 25.6 points per game on 61.4% shooting, a level of scoring volume and efficiency few NBA players have ever approached.

“My teammates and coaches, they trust me to go out there and give me the freedom to make plays and create offense and be who I am,” Williamson said. “I feel like if I didn’t have that part of it, maybe I wouldn’t be in this position right now. I can’t say enough. They trust me to be me. For me to be an All-Star, it’s a big honor.”

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