At 42-27, the Pelicans are fourth in the Western Conference with 13 games left in the regular season. On Thursday, New Orleans lost 121-106 to the Magic on the road. During that game, all-star SF Brandon Ingram bumped into Orlando’s Jalen Suggs. Ingram’s knee bent awkwardly when falling to the ground and the 26-year-old was grimacing in pain.
Ingram had to be helped off the court early in the third quarter and did not return. He was unable to put any weight on his knee. Losing a 20+ point per game scorer this late in the season would be brutal. The veteran SF will have an MRI done to further evaluate his knee. New Orleans hopes that Ingram will not be done for the rest of the season.
Brandon Ingram’s knee bent awkwardly in a loss to the Magic on Thursday
Brandon Ingram was helped to the locker room after knee injury
Hope he’s ok 🙏 pic.twitter.com/45WMMjNEfE
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) March 22, 2024
Since the all-star break, the Pelicans have been thriving as a team. They have won 16 of their last 22 games. Additionally, they are only 1.5 games behind the Clippers in fourth. In his previous two seasons with the Pelicans, Brandon Ingram failed to reach 60 games played. He made 55 starts in 2021-22 and 45 in 2022-34. Before last night, Ingram had been healthy for New Orleans this season. Ingram has only missed six games this season.
However, that number could rise after his knee bent awkwardly vs. the Magic. In 63 games this season, Ingram is averaging (20.9) points, (5.1) rebounds, and (5.8) assists per game. Losing Brandon Ingram for an extended time this late in the season would be hard to overcome for the Pelicans. They’re a tough team in the West but they need a fully healthy roster to compete. The 26-year-old was on track to play 70+ games this season for the first time since his rookie year. That looks unlikely after a knee injury on Thursday vs. Orlando. Just brutal for the Pelicans.
Brandon Ingram appears to have hurt his knee on this play, hope he is ok. 🙏🙏
— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) March 22, 2024
Brandon Ingram is a player the Pelicans love turning to late in the game to get them a clutch basket. The one-time all-star could miss time with a knee injury. Who would the Pelicans turn to in that situation? C.J. McCollum would be the likely candidate as he’s hit several big shots throughout his career. For now, the Pelicans will wait to see just how much time Ingram will miss after a knee injury on Thursday.
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