The New Orleans Pelicans lost Saturday night's game 119-109 to the Oklahoma City Thunder but may have lost even more than that. Brandon Ingram went down with an apparent ankle injury after landing on Thunder forward Lu Dort's foot early in the third quarter. Ingram rolled around the court in pain before teammates had to help carry him to the locker room.
The former All-Star forward just returned on Thursday from a six-game absence after nursing calf soreness. New Orleans quickly ruled him out of the game and Sunday night's game versus the San Antonio Spurs. Zion Williamson is already out indefinitely with a hamstring injury, and it seems like Ingram will also miss significant time.
Their absences put even more pressure on Dejounte Murray, CJ McCollum, and Trey Murphy III to carry the offensive load. Murray told reporters postgame that he spoke to Ingram in the locker room and that the veteran forward was in good spirits.
"Great spirits," Murray told reports. "Like I said he's a fighter, he's always smiling and always high energy. He'll be great."
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— New Orleans Pelicans (@PelicansNBA) December 8, 2024
The Pelicans will await an MRI on his ankle to gauge the severity of the injury. New Orleans travels to San Antonio on Sunday for a back-to-back with the Spurs.
The Pelicans are 0-7 this season when Ingram does not play. Slow starts have plagued this team recently, with Saturday's game seeing the Pelicans get behind by 30 points to the Thunder in the first half. The Pelicans are 5-19 on the season, which marks the worst record in the Western Conference.
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