Pelicans fans are justified calling out reckless player who injured Ingram

It's not exactly breaking news whenever the New Orleans Pelicans run into the injury bug. Built around a star duo comprised of Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram, the Pelicans' faithful have grown almost numb to seeing their players sidelined due to compromised health. This 2024-25 NBA season has really tested the limits of their patience though.

Before the campaign even began, Trey Murphy III went down with a strained hamstring after just one session of training camp and wound up missing the first 10 games of the year. Their new prized acquisition Dejounte Murray fractured his left hand in his very first regular season game with the Pels. Surprisingly, Ingram was actually the one player that managed to stay healthy during the opening stretch of the year.

That changed on December 7 against the Oklahoma City Thunder when he went down with a low ankle sprain, an injury that's going to keep him out indefinitely. This ailment could wind up having massive ramifications on both Brandon Ingram and the Pelicans' future, as Ingram is a prime trade candidate who's also seeking a near-max contract extension. While injuries are a natural by-product of sports and New Orleans has seen plenty of devastating ones come from freak accidents and natural causes, fans are surmising that Ingram's ankle turn might have been caused by some dirty play.

Brandon Ingram's turned ankle draws attention to Lu Dort's antics

Just seconds into the second half against the Thunder, BI elected to take Lu Dort off of the dribble, powering his way through some strong, physical defense to the free-throw line. Once he's at the key, Ingram turns away from the basket and into a patented fade-away jumper spinning right.

Dort, though, conceded no space, potentially caught some contact from Ingram on his rise, and fell to the ground, drawing an offensive foul on BI. Because he was contesting so tightly and ended up on the floor in Ingram's proximity, BI wound up landing on him after his shot attempt and ultimately turned his ankle.

Many have surmised that Dort flopped on the play which would mean that he ended up injuring Ingram by faking one himself. While flopping isn't exactly a rare behavior in the NBA, it's not often that a player's theatrics causes actual harm to a different athlete.

It's pretty clear that Dort wasn't trying to injure Ingram with his flop, but, if he did actually fake the contact, he did abandon all care and sportsmanship in a play that caused BI an injury and could wind up costing him millions of dollars. On that specific play, Dort would have likely been in Ingram's landing space — which is now a flagrant foul in the NBA — regardless of whether he flopped or not.

Throughout his career, Lu Dort has built a reputation as a tough-nosed, physical defender, and for good reason. He's built more like an NFL defensive end than a typical NBA wing, and he's not shy about using his size and strength to disrupt ball-handlers. While his effort, instincts, and talent on that end of the court are undeniable, he's also been known to throw in a few extracurricular actions in pursuit of a stop with reckless abandon.

There's no doubt that Dort has accumulated a few clips that aren't typical plays in a basketball game. He might not be doing anything with dirty intent, but the way he throws his body around is dangerous and Ingram is hard evidence of that. At the least, it's worth reviewing and monitoring from the league.