While they picked up a road win in Miami, Saturday was a rough night for New Orleans. First, their superstar in the making Anthony Davis aggravated his sprained shoulder and had to leave the game.
Then this — sharpshooter Ryan Anderson went down grabbing his knee and had to be helped off the court. Officially the Pelicans called it a sprain after the game. We will see in the next 24-48 hours if that gets changed to anything worse once an MRI is done, and the doctors get a better look at it. (Davis will be re-evaluated on Sunday as well.)
Anderson was battling for rebound position after a missed Dante Cunningham shot when Mario Chalmers inadvertently stepped on his ankle, twisting Anderson’s leg awkwardly. He instantly went to the ground grabbing his knee.
Anderson is a key bench player for a Pelican team trying to fight for the final playoff spot in the West. He averages 14.8 points shooting 34 percent from three, plus grabs 5.2 rebounds playing 29 minutes per game for New Orleans.
Why this is potentially very bad for the Pelicans: When Davis and Anderson are on the court together the team’s offense jumps to 112 points per 100 possessions, and they outscore opponents by 5.8 points per 100. That combo plays well together, and if one or both are lost for an extended period it’s a blow to the team’s already fading playoff dreams.
(Hat tip to James Herbert of CBSSport.com for the video.)