The Pelicans announced today that Ryan Anderson is out indefinitely with a herniated disc in his back. A quick look around the web indicates an injury like this could take a month or more to recover from, depending on the seriousness of the injury.
It goes without saying that this is a major blow to the Pelicans’ hope to stay in contention for a playoff spot. Their frontcourt depth was already pathetic, and due to the way this roster was constructed, Anderson has the least replaceable skill-set on the team. When Anderson plays, the offense hums, scoring 110+ points per 100 possessions. When he sits, the team drops to around 106, and only Jrue Holiday impacts the offense in any comparable way.
This is the modern NBA and either efficient scoring from the three point line or the free throw line is a must. The Pelicans don’t really get free throws, but without Ryan Anderson, they also average less than a dozen three point attempts per game. That’s a number about 20% less than the next nearest team. Easy points will be hard to come by.
Best wishes to Ryno, and hopes for a speedy recovery.
8 responses to “Anderson out Indefinitely”
Not good. I wouldn’t be shocked if he missed the rest of the season with this. What a terribel break.
Get well soon Rhyno.
nolahog I wouldn’t be surprised if he sits after recovering (assuming he recovers before seasons end) to make certain everything’s alright.
I wonder if this is where the tank starts. Some really nice SFs in the draft that would enhance this team greatly. (again, assuming we keep our pick; top 5)
Time to tank. Start Roberts, Rivers, Withey, Miller, Aminu for the rest of the season. 15-67 Lets go!
Man I can truly understand what Ryno is dealing with right now. Feb 2013 I suffered from a herinated disc in my lower back from a injury I had when I was in the Army in 1999. This was some of the worse pain I have experienced and it crapped me for almost 3 months. This is a injury that gets better with time and pain meds. I can honestly say, that since that happen my back has not been the same, but I have osteoarthritis in my lower back as well, so that’s probably more of the problem than anything lol. I hope that Ryno fully recovers, because this can be an annoying injury.
Caffeinedisaster nolahog You cant play to tank with just a top 5 protection, as it would be really likely it wont fall there. For sure a couple of eastern conf teams wont crack the 15 wins and i doubt we will be last in the wast, so there you have already 3 teams above us (above, bellow, tankier than us, whatever…) and easily a team jumps some spots, so tanking SHOULD not be a goal or course of action…We could just suck without Anderson, but i doubt it will be in hopes of tanking…
Jimb0 Cant understand fans that are happy that a possibility of tanking is available…You play to win…I dont want to be a fan of a perpetual tanking team…if not i would be a King fan…
Hate to say it but this is looking Stojakavic-esque. SF/PF shooter with injury issues and a big contract.