Pelicans' Tyreke Evans, Norris Cole could make debuts Tuesday
New Orleans Pelicans guard Tyreke Evans (right knee surgery) and guard Norris Cole (high left ankle sprain) could each debut on Tuesday versus the Memphis Grizzlies.
Pelicans' coach Alvin Gentry said, "there’s a very good chance that both of those guys will be ready Tuesday." This would put Evans ahead of schedule from the six-to-eight week timeline that was provided back in October. He will be on a minutes restriction similar to what Jrue Holiday experienced, but the biggest impact will be on Ish Smith and his playing time. The ideal scenario would have Evans playing a lot of time at the small forward, with Smith remaining in the rotation ahead of Cole.
Smith has been impressive based on counting numbers this season, averaging 11.9 points, 4.2 rebounds, 8.1 assists and 1.2 steals in 30.5 minutes per game, but his nERD tells another story as his -5.1 is 125th in the league. Evans played in a career-best 79 games last season. He put up 16.6 points per game with a .477 effective field goal percentage while posting a career-high 32.7 percent assist rate.
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