The injury-plagued Pelicans will get some key reinforcements back on Thursday against Phoenix, as Brandon Ingram and Herbert Jones have been upgraded from questionable to available, the team announced (via Twitter).
Ingram has missed the past five games with right plantaris tendonitis, while Jones has been sidelined since Oct. 29 with a right shoulder strain and small low-grade partial thickness tear in his rotator cuff. An All-Defensive First Team selection in 2023/24, Jones has missed the past 18 games due to the injury.
Shams Charania of ESPN reported earlier this week that the two starting wings were on track to return on Thursday.
Here are a few more notes from New Orleans:
- Another player who has been upgraded from questionable to available for Thursday’s matchup is rookie first-round pick Yves Missi, who is dealing with a right ankle sprain. While the Pelicans’ season has been an unmitigated disaster to this point, having lost nine straight and 15 of their past 16 games, Missi’s play has been one of the few silver linings. As Christian Clark of NOLA.com writes, the 20-year-old big man had a career night in Monday’s loss to Atlanta, recording 23 points (on 11-of-14 shooting) and 12 rebounds. “He’s just getting better and better,” head coach Willie Green said. “A true bright spot for our team.”
- Will the Pelicans be able to salvage their season after a 4-18 start already has them 7.5 games behind San Antonio for the final play-in spot in the Western Conference? William Guillory of The Athletic explores that topic. According to Guillory, a major roster or coaching change seems unlikely in the near future, but the pressure is definitely mounting on Green after a string of non-competitive losses.
- In case you missed it, on Wednesday the Pelicans provided injury updates on Zion Williamson (left hamstring strain), Jose Alvarado (left hamstring strain) and Jordan Hawkins (lumbar spine annular fissure). Williamson and Alvarado are out at least two more weeks, while Hawkins will be checked out again in one week.
Just going off recent reports.
Zion has changed agents, wants a trade and was disappointed to end up in New Orleans cause he wanted to be in NY.
Brandon Ingram is in trade rumours every other day. On an expiring deal, pelicans have already resigned/secured long term, Zion, DeJounte, Trey, Herb, Hawkins and Missi.
Might sound crazy but I actually think the key to long term success for New Orleans is building on Dejounte Hawkins Trey Herb Missi as a starting 5 but adding 1 top tier elite player to go with them from a Ingram/Zion trade.
You’ve got CJ ahead of Hawkins until his deal runs out basically.
But for example Zion plus whatever for Embiid,
Embiid is a top 5/10 player then around him Dejounte CJ Trey and Herb with Hawkins and Missi off the bench.
Good mix of defence/attack, youth/experience, and built to win now and hopefully long term.
Not that Embiid is their guy just an example.
I just don’t see a world in which Ingram and or Zion have any success leading this team which is such a waste with the amount of talent they do have.
Time is a flat circle huh
All NO issues go back to Zion NOT playing. So his inability to control his eating habits or getting in playing shape. He’s not the first athlete to EAT his way out of a pro league.
Robert Traylor comes to mind. Though his case is pretty sad.
Wes Unseld is listed at 6’7” and 245 lbs. Probably played bigger than that. He played 13yrs as a C. And is a HOFer. Zion has no clue what commitment to the game means. Unfortunately neither does NO franchise.
Pels need to tell Zion to STFU when he claims to “know his body”. Tell him to either work with someone like LeBron who knows how to maintain his body or they will exercise the weight clause in his contact. Being amazing “when healthy” doesn’t mean anything if you only pay half the games, and NOLA is stuck in the mud until something changes.