Omri Casspi to miss 4-6 weeks with broken thumb

Omri Casspi’s debut ended with an injury and bad news for his new team, the New Orleans Pelicans.

In DeMarcus Cousins’ debut, the New Orleans Pelicans were blown out by the Houston Rockets and received some bad injury news.

Forward Omri Casspi, who, like Cousins, was acquired from the Sacramento Kings this week, broke his right thumb during the Pelicans’ 129-99 loss to the Rockets. ESPN’s Justin Verrier first reported Casspi’s injury:

This is a blow to the Pelicans and it comes at a tricky time for the team. With their loss and the Denver Nuggets currently trailing the Kings, New Orleans is still just 2.5 back for the West’s No. 8 seed. With Cousins now paired with Anthony Davis, there are playoff expectations attached to the team now. Such is life with two of the league’s best big men.

Losing Casspi hurts largely because of his shooting. His numbers are down from a career-best year last season, but he did deal with a calf injury earlier this year and may have benefited from a fresh start in New Orleans.

For his career, he’s a 36.8 percent three-point shooter. Assuming he returns on the 4-6 week timeline, it’s possible that he could play a few games before the playoffs start, assuming the Pelicans are still in the the hunt then.

Casspi’s injury also overshadowed a strong game from Cousins. In his debut, he finished with 27 points, 14 rebounds, five assists, five steals and four blocks  – putting him one block shy of a 5×5.

He, too, was bummed out by Casspi’s injury:

To replace Casspi, New Orleans will now have to lean on the likes of Solomon Hill, E’Twaun Moore and Dante Cunningham to do more. It’s also possible that Hollis Thompson, who the team signed to a 10-day contract Thursday, could immediately enter the rotation.

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Hollis, a career 38.9 shooter from three, previously played for the Philadelphia 76ers and played eight games in the D-League with the Austin Spurs.