UPDATE: Pelicans’ medical staff says Davis suffered a right knee contusion in collision with Paul, no structural damage. He did not return to the game.
After an apparent knee-to-knee collision with Clippers guard Chris Paul, Pelicans forward Anthony Davis was knocked to the floor near the sideline. He was taken to the locker room, helped by a pair of teammates. The severity of the potential injury and Davis’ status will be updated later.
Clippers (8-8), Pelicans (4-12)
LOS ANGELES – It could’ve been worse. New Orleans could’ve lost a game and its best player for an extended period of time. Instead, Pelicans two-time All-Star Anthony Davis – who collided with Clippers point guard Chris Paul in the third quarter and was taken to the locker room – was ruled to have a right knee contusion (bruise). Although he did not return to action with the Clippers handily in front, Davis was listed as questionable and returned to the team bench, after what at first appeared to possibly be a serious injury. Prior to and following that incident, the Clippers continued their recent dominance over the Pelicans in head-to-head games – at least in Staples Center. In the Pelicans’ previous five visits to the Clippers’ homecourt, they’d lost by margins of 16, 32, 13, 20 and seven points, respectively. This time, L.A. rolled to a 21-point victory. New Orleans has actually had some of its best wins in recent years over the Clippers in games played at the Smoothie King Center. NOLA is 1-1 on its three-game Western road trip and will visit Utah on Saturday.
IT WAS OVER WHEN…
Lance Stephenson threw down a one-handed alley oop dunk off a fast-break feed from Josh Smith, giving Los Angeles a 20-point lead with 10-plus minutes remaining. The Clippers’ lead eventually ballooned to as many as 25 as they ended a recent stretch of disappointing home performances.
PELICANS PLAYER OF THE GAME
During the Nov. 10 win over Dallas, point guard Ish Smith notched the first double-double of his NBA career. Now they’re occurring so often it barely merits mention. Smith registered another such outing, this time finishing with 15 points and 10 assists in 38 minutes. Like virtually everyone in a navy blue uniform, it wasn’t a great shooting night for Smith (7-for-20), but he again consistently found open Pelicans for shots.
PELICANS UNSUNG CONTRIBUTOR
Facing a Clippers team with a traditional paint center in DeAndre Jordan, Omer Asik helped keep the Pelicans competitive on the backboards, pulling down 10 rebounds in only 16 minutes. Jordan only played 25 minutes himself, posting eight points and 11 boards.
