The New Orleans Pelicans will try to find a way to compete without one of their top players during the final month of the regular season.
They don’t have any other choice.
The Pelicans (18-51) will play their first game since Trey Murphy III suffered a season-ending injury when they tip off against the Minnesota Timberwolves (40-30) on Wednesday night in Minneapolis. It will be the opener of a two-game set between the teams, who also will play Friday night.
Murphy was injured during the Pelicans’ most recent game, a 127-81 loss Monday against the Detroit Pistons. A further exam showed that he tore the labrum in his right shoulder and partially tore his rotator cuff.
The fourth-year forward was in the midst of the best season of his career. He averaged 21.2 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.5 assists in 53 games (51 starts). He added 1.1 steals and 0.7 blocks per game.
Pelicans coach Willie Green said Murphy’s injury cast a dark cloud over Monday’s game. It will be his job to get his players to refocus as they head to Minnesota.
“We kind of felt sorry for ourselves a bit (after the injury),” Green said. “You can’t do that. But it shook us up, especially with all we’ve been through this season.”
That includes previous season-ending injuries to Dejounte Murray and Herb Jones, along with an extended absence for star big man Zion Williamson.
Minnesota is in better shape both physically and mentally as it continues a five-game homestand. The Timberwolves won eight games in a row before falling short 132-130 in overtime against the Indiana Pacers on Monday.
Despite the hot streak, Timberwolves coach Chris Finch said his team still has room for improvement with 12 games to go in the regular season.
The overtime loss against Indiana exposed some issues that Minnesota needs to correct, he said.
“(We were) just playing too fast, almost out of control,” Finch said. “There’s just no need for that. There’s a lot of ways to close out a game. It’s not just making game-winning shots.
“That’s what we’ve not been able to do all season long. In that moment, we have to have composure and the ability to take control of the game, and we didn’t.”
Anthony Edwards leads the Timberwolves with 27.6 points to go along with 5.8 rebounds and 4.6 assists per game. He is averaging more than 10 3-point attempts per game, and he is making 40 percent from beyond the arc.
Julius Randle ranks second with 18.7 points per game, and Naz Reid is next with 14.7.
Williamson leads the Pelicans with 24.4 points per game and is shooting 56.1 percent from the field.
Minus Murphy, the next leading scorer on the team is C.J. McCollum. He is averaging 20.9 points per game and shooting 37.6 percent from beyond the 3-point line.
This will be the second of three games between the teams this season. Minnesota held on for a 104-97 win in the first matchup Jan. 7 in New Orleans.
