Ankle Sprain To Sideline Nickeil Alexander-Walker At Least Two Weeks

Pelicans guard Nickeil Alexander-Walker underwent an MRI yesterday to address an ankle injury. New Orleans discovered that Alexander-Walker has a “moderate left high-ankle sprain,” per a team press release.

This continues a string of bad luck for the Pelicans’ back court, as the team announced in the same press release that fellow guard Josh Hart had a right thumb surgery today, and will miss at least three weeks in his own recovery. Rookie point guard Kira Lewis Jr. is also on the Pelicans’ injury list.

Sharp-shooting veteran point guard Isaiah Thomas was clearly added just in time on a 10-day deal last week.

Alexander-Walker had enjoyed a significant uptick in play during his sophomore NBA season. He was named to the league’s 2020/21 Rising Stars list ahead of the All-Star Game last month.

Selected with the No. 17 pick in the 2019 draft, the 22-year-old out of Virginia Tech holds averages of 10.2 PPG, 3.1 RPG, 2.0 APG and 1.0 SPG across 41 games this season (including 10 starts). Alexander-Walker is also connecting on a solid 34.8% of his 4.6 three-point attempts a night. He has seen his playing time increase from 12.6 MPG in his rookie year to 20.8 MPG for 2020/21 so far.