Pelicans Injury Report: New Orleans Fully Healthy Against Trae Young-led Wizards

After losing to the Phoenix Suns on Friday to fall to 20-45 for the season, the New Orleans Pelicans have an excellent chance to bounce back against the Washington Wizards on Sunday. The Wizards have the fourth-worst record in the league at 16-46, but have the worst net rating in the NBA, and have lost their last seven games.

To make matters even more favorable for the Pelicans is the fact that they will be at full strength at the Smoothie King Center. They don't have any players on their injury report and will play their key contributors significant minutes as they don't play again until Wednesday.

Pelicans Have Major Injury Advantage vs. Wizards on Sunday

When the Pels had their entire roster healthy against Phoenix on Friday, they started the Dejounte Murray-Herb Jones-Trey Murphy-Saddiq Bey-Zion Williamson group. This lineup that doesn't have a traditional center has been working well for head coach James Borrego, outscoring their opponents by 16 points per 100 possessions, according to Cleaning the Glass data. It's safe to assume that the Pels will stick with this lineup as much as possible against the Wizards.

Off the bench, Jeremiah Fears, Derik Queen, and Yves Missi will play a significant role, while Karlo Matkovic and Bryce McGowens should round out the rotation. Yet, it's important to note that none of the bench players played over 16 minutes on Friday, highlighting Borrego's willingness to ride with the veterans who give him the best chance to win. Barring an unexpected development or an injury, expect Jordan Poole and DeAndre Jordan to be out of the rotation.

For the Wizards, all eyes will be on Trae Young, who will play his second game with the team after being acquired in January. He made his Wizards debut on Thursday, putting up 12 points and six assists against the Jazz. Yet, he only played 19 minutes and will continue to be on a minutes restriction. Considering that Washington has little interest in winning games at this point in the season, Young will not play a minute more than he needs to.

Fellow midseason acquisition Anthony Davis, however, remains sidelined with a finger injury and has yet to play for his new team. The Wizards will also be missing Kyshawn George, Cam Whitmore, Tristan Vukcevic, Jamir Watkins, and D'Angelo Russell. George had turned into an impactful starter for Washington this season, and his absence will be felt.