Jordan Hawkins has suffered a low back strain that will keep him out of action for one to two weeks, the Pelicans announced (via Twitter). The second-year shooting guard will undergo a program of treatment and rehabilitation.
Hawkins, the 14th selection in the 2023 draft, appeared in 67 games as a rookie, averaging 7.8 PPG in 17.3 minutes per night while shooting 38.2% from the field and 36.6% from three-point range. His role has been expanded this season, at least in part because of a wave of injuries on New Orleans’ roster, and he has responded by increasing his scoring to 16.3 PPG in 30.3 minutes per game with .408/.365/.931 shooting splits.
Hawkins missed Monday’s game with Portland due to low back tightness and was listed as questionable ahead of Wednesday’s contest against Cleveland. He played 19 minutes, but shot just 1-of-7 from the field and was limited to seven points.
The Pelicans are already without Dejounte Murray, Trey Murphy, CJ McCollum and Herbert Jones, who are all sidelined with multi-week injuries. Zion Williamson sat out Monday with soreness in his right thigh, but was able to return and play 29 minutes against the Cavaliers.
New Orleans has four games on its schedule over the next week. Hawkins would miss seven games if he’s able to return for the November 22 contest against Golden State, which is part of the in-season tournament.
The NOP injury list (again) reads like that of an NFL team that’s been eliminated from the playoffs for weeks, and playing out the season. A run of bad luck, perhaps, but it’s been going on a while.
This is a generational level run of bad luck with injuries