The banged-up New Orleans Pelicans are taking on a short-handed Golden State Warriors team on Tuesday night, and they have picked up another key injury of their own in the process. Defensive ace Herb Jones, one of the best stoppers in the league, went to the locker room after suffering what appeared to be a shoulder injury while diving for a loose ball, according to Pelicans sideline reporter Andrew Lopez.
Jones initially tried to stretch his shoulder out after Golden State's Brandin Podziemski dove on top of him, but ended up having to go get it checked out.
Shortly after Jones left the game, reserve wing Javonte Green went down with an injury, but was able to remain in the game.
The Pelicans can't afford to lose another defender on the perimeter, as they're already playing without Dejounte Murray and Trey Murphy III due to injuries. Murray fractured his hand in the Pelicans' season opener and will be out for four-to-six weeks and Murphy III has been nursing a nagging hamstring injury.
Jones was having a quiet night on the stat sheet before he got injured, scoring five points and grabbing three rebounds. However, his impact on the defensive end of the floor cannot be overlooked. Without Jones on the court along with their other injured contributors, the Pelicans have been going back and forth between a man defense and a zone.
The Pelicans are already very thin in the front court and are relying on plenty of small lineups with Zion Williamson at center or rookie Yves Missi manning the middle. This puts a lot of pressure on the wings to contribute and be impactful on both ends, so the injuries stacking up is a very bad sign. In a Western Conference that looks like it is going to be extremely competitive, the Pelicans are already fighting an uphill battle just four games into the season.
