The ink is barely dry on Kevon Looney’s new two-year contract with the New Orleans Pelicans, and he’s already on the injury report. The three-time champ, fresh off an eight-year dynasty run with the Golden State Warriors, went down with a left knee injury during a preseason game against, of all teams, the South East Melbourne Phoenix. Yes, you read that right. Not the Rockets, not the Lakers, but the pride of Australia. You travel halfway across the world just to get banged up.
The team dropped the official word, and it is one of those classic “good news, bad news” situations. The diagnosis is a proximal tibiofibular ligament sprain. Sounds like something you’d need a medical dictionary and a stiff drink to understand, but the bottom line is he’s out. The Pelicans say Looney will be re-evaluated in two to three weeks, which is coach-speak for “don’t expect him anytime soon.” This means the big man will almost certainly miss the start of the 2025-26 season. So much for hitting the ground running.
Poole’s Giddiness and a Painful Reminder
You have to feel for Jordan Poole. The guy finally escapes the basketball purgatory that was the Washington Wizards, reunites with his old championship buddy Kevon Looney, and even cracks a joke about it. “I’m super excited, man. I haven’t had a good screen in two years,” Poole quipped during media day.
It was a funny, self-deprecating jab at his time with the Wizards, and you could feel his genuine excitement. That quote is now dripping with some painful, unfortunate irony. Poole wanted good screens, and now his best screen-setter is watching from the sidelines in a knee brace. The basketball gods have a cruel sense of humor, don’t they?
What Does This Mean For the Pelicans?
For a team that’s constantly battling the injury bug, this is the last thing Pelicans fans wanted to see. Looney was brought in to be that gritty, veteran presence in the paint—a guy who knows what it takes to win and does the dirty work. He’s not a superstar, but he’s a vital role player, the kind of locker-room glue guy every championship contender needs. Now, the Pels have to patch together a frontcourt rotation without him for the foreseeable future.
In just 10 minutes of preseason action against the Phoenix, Looney put up 4 points, 2 rebounds, and a steal. It was a small sample size, but it was a glimpse of the efficiency and hustle he was supposed to bring. Instead, New Orleans is left with a familiar feeling of dread. It’s still early, and a two-to-three-week timeline isn’t a death sentence, but for a franchise desperate for a healthy start, this feels like a punch to the gut before the bell has even rung. Here’s to hoping Looney makes a quick recovery, because Poole is waiting for those screens, and Pelicans fans are just waiting for a season without a cloud of injuries hanging over it.
