The New Orleans Pelicans received some encouraging news on Friday. Their star forward Brandon Ingram’s knee injury isn’t as scary as initially believed, and he’ll be able to return before the end of the regular season.
Ingram hurt his knee in the third quarter of a 121-106 loss to the Orlando Magic on Thursday. His left knee bent awkwardly after making contact with Magic’s Jalen Suggs, and he ended up falling to the floor in pain. After getting up, Ingram had to be helped to get off the floor.
An MRI test showed that there is no structural damage to Ingram’s knee and that he suffered a bone contusion. According to a statement issued by the Pelicans, he will be re-evaluated in two weeks. If Ingram is able to return at that point, he will have missed six games.
The Pelicans are one of the hottest teams in the NBA right now, winning eight out of their last 10 games, and Ingram played an important role in that. He has been the team’s second-best scorer, averaging 20.9 points per game while also adding 5.1 rebounds and a career-high 5.8 assists.
The Pelicans will now hope to continue the momentum without Ingram with their eyes set on the fourth seed in the Western Conference. They are currently sitting at No. 5 with 1.5 games behind the Los Angeles Clippers.
