Anthony Davis out 1-2 weeks, Ryan Anderson out 2-4 weeks

The Pelicans—and NBA fans everywhere—can exhale. Anthony Davis is fine. On Saturday night in Miami, he re-aggravated the right shoulder injury that forced him to sit out of the All-Star Game and missed the remainder of the game. There was concern that he might be out a while, which would have been a catastrophe for the Pelicans.

Fortunately, the Pelicans announced that he will only miss 1-2 weeks.

The New Orleans Pelicans announced today that forward Anthony Davis has been diagnosed with a right shoulder sprain. An MRI conducted by the team’s medical staff this morning confirmed the right shoulder sprain. The injury occurred at the 3:38 mark of the first quarter in last night’s game against the Miami HEAT. He is expected to miss 1-2 weeks.

This is a huge break for the Pelicans. They’re two games out of the eighth seed in the Western Conference and face an uphill battle to crack the playoffs regardless. But without Davis, who has been arguably the best player in the league this season, they would have been utterly hopeless. If he only misses a couple of games with this shoulder injury, they can live with that. It’s no sure thing that they make the playoffs regardless, but at least they’re still in the fight if Davis isn’t out an extended period.

More concerning is the right knee injury suffered by Ryan Anderson, which has been diagnosed as a sprained MCL. From the Pelicans’ release:

Additionally, Ryan Anderson underwent an MRI this morning and has been diagnosed with an MCL sprain in his right knee. The injury took place at the 9:41 mark during the second quarter of last night’s game against the Miami HEAT. He is expected to miss 2-4 weeks.

Anderson is obviously not as crucial to the Pelicans’ success as Davis, but he’s a significant rotation player and the team will be seriously shorthanded without him. The next month of this season is going to be a trying one for New Orleans.