Halo

New Orleans Pelicans big man Alexis Ajinca will miss at least one month with a knee injury.

Per Chris Mannix of the Vertical, Ajinca will be out four to six weeks after receiving bilateral knee injections for patellar tendonitis after sitting out Wednesday's season opener against the Memphis Grizzlies.

Ajinca didn't offer much offensively last season, averaging 5.3 points per game on 50 percent shooting for New Orleans.

However, the 29-year-old averaged 0.6 blocks per contest and held opponents to 55.4 percent shooting from inside 10 feet, 0.9 percent lower than their normal field-goal percentage from that distance, per NBA.com.

Having Ajinca inside takes some of the defensive burden off Anthony Davis and DeMarcus Cousins when he's on the floor with one of the two starting big men.

Ajinca isn't one of New Orleans' most important players, so his absence is unlikely to have a significant impact on the team. But injuries ravaged the Pelicans last year and erased their hopes of returning to the playoffs.

Fans will hope Ajinca's problem doesn't linger as the Pelicans look to make it back to the playoffs after finishing under .500 each of the past two seasons.



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