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Norris Cole (ankle) could make his season debut Tuesday against the Grizzlies, Pelicans.com reports. "There's a very good chance that both of those guys will be ready Tuesday," coach Alvin Gentry said of Cole and Tyreke Evans. "Which obviously gives us a

Cole (ankle) could make his season debut Tuesday against the Grizzlies, Pelicans.com reports. "There's a very good chance that both of those guys will be ready Tuesday," coach Alvin Gentry said of Cole and Tyreke Evans (knee). "Which obviously gives us a lot more depth and puts players back in their normal roles that we saw for them at the start of the season."

Analysis:

Cole has been out since the preseason since suffering a high-ankle sprain during a training camp practice. With Evans also sidelined and Jrue Holiday (leg) limited periodically throughout the season, the Pelicans have been starved for depth in the backcourt, forcing players like Ish Smith and Toney Douglas into much larger roles than expected. Cole's return should provide a boost offensively to the Pelicans' struggling bench, and the former Cleveland State standout averaged 9.9 points and 3.2 assists in 28 games for the Pelicans in the second half of last season after coming over from Miami in a trade. Cole shot 44.4 percent from the field and 37.8 percent from three -- both career bests -- over that span.

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