Pelicans forward Brandon Ingram exited Thursday’s matchup with the Magic with a left knee injury after planting awkwardly, according to NOLA.com’s Christian Clark.
Ingram appeared to hyperextend the knee, writhed on the floor and had to be helped off the court. According to Clark, he put minimal pressure on his knee as he headed back to the locker room. After the game, head coach Willie Green said Ingram would have an MRI, but didn’t have any other information (Twitter link).
“It’s extremely difficult to see him go down,” Green said. “Our prayers will be going up tonight. Hopefully, we get some good news tonight.”
Ingram scored 14 points in his first 21 minutes before sustaining the injury. On the season, he is averaging 21.0 points, 5.1 rebounds and 5.8 assists per game while shooting 48.9% from the field and 35.7% from deep. Without Ingram, the Pelicans fell to the Magic 121-106.
In his absence, Trey Murphy shouldered more minutes and finished the game with 21 points in 29 minutes. Clark expects Murphy to continue to play more with Ingram out.
“It hurts,” Murphy said. “You hope there is nothing wrong with him. He’s been a big help for me in my career and my progression. The whole maturation process. To see him go down, it hurts. Definitely just pray for him.”