The National Basketball Association (NBA) franchise the New Orleans Pelicans have sold more than 10,000 season tickets since winning the right to draft US college basketball star Zion Williamson.

Back in May, the Pelicans secured the rights to the 2019 NBA draft first pick, with Williamson the consensus number one choice after a stellar National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) basketball season with Duke University.

Such is the level of expectation around the 18-year-old, the NBA franchise sold more than 2,500 season tickets within hours of securing the number one pick. Now, nearly two weeks on from selecting Williamson at the NBA Draft on 20th June, they have crossed the 10,000 mark, with Pelicans president Dennis Lauscha saying that he hopes around 14,000 will be sold by the season opening game on 5th July.

The figures look highly encouraging ahead of the Pelicans 2019/20 season, despite losing All-Star Anthony Davis in a trade to the Los Angeles Lakers. Last campaign, the Pelicans finished 25th out of the NBA 30 NBA franchises in attendance figures. The franchise’s Smoothie King Center home saw an average gate of 16,004 and filled 93.1 per cent of its capacity, a lowly 20th in the league.

The signing of Williamson could also prove commercially lucrative for the Pelicans. Five days after singing for the franchise, he had sold more US$110 Nike jerseys and US$32 T-shirts than all the first-round picks in the 2018 NBA Draft combined, according to Fanatics.

The Pelicans will be hoping the surge in ticket sales and having Williamson in their ranks will improve their fortunes on the court. In what was dismal 2018/19 season, the team lost 49 games and finished 13th in the Western Conference.