DURHAM, N.C. — No matter how anyone felt about the NBA’s slam dunk contest, which Hamidou Diallo would soon conquer, there was little arguing that the best show in basketball on this particular February night had just concluded a couple hours down the road. Diallo’s soaring honey-dip slam over one big Shaqtus would prove a worthy conclusion to an otherwise underwhelming All-Star Saturday, but here at Cameron Indoor, one of college basketball’s last cathedrals left standing, one might have sensed they were peering into the weekend’s future.
Allegedly unbeknownst to him, Zion Williamson had already been a topic of discussion back in Charlotte, where hours earlier, LeBron James and Stephen Curry had offered praise for Duke’s sensational 18-year-old, whose game is equal parts balletic and blunt instrument.