Before the season tipped off, the Pelicans announced backup big man Alexis Ajinca would be out four-to-six weeks following bilateral knee injections to help deal with his patellar tendonitis. That didn’t help, and in early December Ajinca had surgery on his right knee to clean things up.
It wasn’t enough. Tuesday morning Ajinca had surgery on his left knee to deal with his patellar tendon. He is done for this season.
The New Orleans Pelicans announced today that center Alexis Ajinca underwent successful surgery on his left patellar tendon this morning. The typical timetable to return to play for this type of injury is 4-6 months.
— New Orleans Pelicans (@PelicansNBA) March 27, 2018
La seconde opération c’est bien passé.Merci à ma famille,mes amis et les fans pour votre soutiens.J’ai hâte de revenir sur le terrain #TeamAjinça 🏀💪🏽
— Alexis Ajinça (@AjincaAlexis42) March 27, 2018
The second operation went well.Thanks to my family my friends and fans for your support.I can’t wait to get back on the court. pic.twitter.com/dP3hY1l6Ak
Ajinca is under contract with the Pelicans next season for $5.3 million. If he’s not going to return (or even if he is) the Pelicans could try to include him in a trade or, if they want, waive and stretch him to save a little money on the cap next season. However, at that price, it may be just best for the Pelicans to eat the contract for a season, and if Ajinca can come back and contribute, that’s a nice bonus.