Jrue Holiday Injury: Updates on Pelicans PG's Recovery from Leg Surgery

Joe PantornoSep 4, 2015

New Orleans Pelicans guard Jrue Holiday has spent the offseason recovering from surgery on his lower right leg and could be cleared for training camp.

Continue for updates.

Holiday to Return with Restrictions

Friday, Sept. 25

Head coach Alvin Gentry said Holiday would be on a minutes restriction until January, and that in the early going the guard would only play 15 minutes per game, per Brett Dawson of the New Orleans Advocate.

According to NOLA.com's John Reid on Sept. 4, Holiday has made "enough progress" after undergoing surgery on his leg in May that he is expected to join the team once training camp starts on Sept. 29.

While he might see the court soon, Gentry is going to take things slowly, per Reid:

"
Holiday is likely going to be under restrictions involving practicing just once a day when two-a-day practices are scheduled during camp. ... Holiday has not experienced any setbacks in his rehab this summer, but the Pelicans intend to monitor him cautiously that could include minute restrictions for both preseason and early regular season games.
"

It seems like a good idea to take it slowly, as Holiday has been nagged by this injury over the past two seasons. He's missed 90 games in total, including 42 in 2014-15 after a stress reaction injury.

At the moment, Holiday is the only man listed to back up starter Tyreke Evans, according to ESPN, as Norris Cole continues to test the free-agenct market.

A healthy Holiday could create a lethal combination at the point guard position in New Orleans. Both Evans and Holiday are capable of putting up around 15 points per game with five or six assists as versatile, fast-paced players.

New Orleans will have to bring in another point guard just to preserve Holiday and make sure he gets the rest needed to ensure he stays healthy. A 100 percent Holiday will make New Orleans the kind of team that sees only a slight dip in talent coming off the bench. A player who can dish it as well as score, he could thrive working with the likes of Anthony Davis as the Pelicans battle for relevancy in the Western Conference next season.

Follow Joe Pantorno (@JoePantorno) on Twitter. Stats courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com.