Pelicans' Evans done for season following knee surgery
New Orleans Pelicans guard Tyreke Evans underwent successful right knee surgery on Thursday and will miss the remainder of the season, the team announced.
The surgery was geared toward alleviating pain from tendinitis, which Evans had been dealing with since late January. It was the fourth procedure Evans has had on his right knee in the past two years, and the third in the last nine months.
He had arthroscopic surgery on the knee in October after injuring it during a preseason game and subsequently missed the first month of the season. That came just five months after Evans had arthroscopic surgery to close out the 2014-15 season. He also had scar tissue removed from the knee at the end of the 2013-14 campaign.
Bookended by the two operations, Evans managed to suit up for just 25 games in 2015-16, the third season of a four-year, $44-million deal with New Orleans. The tri-positional 26-year-old averaged 15.2 points, 5.2 rebounds, 1.3 steals, and a team-leading 6.6 assists, while posting career highs in 3-point percentage (38.8) and PER (18.4).
The Pelicans went 11-14 in games he played. They're 9-19 without him.