Derrick White leaves Spurs game with knee contusion

Derrick White left Sunday’s Spurs game with a knee injury.

The San Antonio Spurs got a key victory over the New Orleans Pelicans on Sunday, but suffered another kind of loss after Derrick White went down.

Despite securing a 122-113 win over the Pelicans to pull right behind the Portland Trail Blazers and Phoenix Suns in the race for ninth place, the Spurs also lost one of their best players in the bubble to a knee contusion he suffered in the second half.

As White drove to the basket early in the third quarter, his layup attempt was blocked by Jrue Holiday. The Spurs guard landed awkwardly on his left leg and had to be helped off the court, though he walked off under his own power. White was evaluated for a left knee contusion and did not return to the game.

A serious injury to Derrick White would be devastating for him and the Spurs

While making the playoffs for a record 23rd consecutive season would be an awesome accomplishment for Gregg Popovich and the Spurs, their main focus in the NBA bubble has been developing their young talent like White, Dejounte Murray and Lonnie Walker IV.

White has been an intrinsic part of San Antonio’s focus on development and their ability to win games to compete for a playoff spot. Heading into Sunday’s game, the third-year guard was averaging 21.8 points, 5.2 assists and 5.0 rebounds per game, shooting an efficient 47.1 percent from the field and a scorching 45.2 percent from 3-point range on a whopping 8.4 attempts per game. For a guy who only averaged 11.0 points a night during the regular season, White was blossoming as an under-the-radar breakout player in Orlando.

Hopefully an update from the Spurs medical staff will provide good news that White’s knee injury isn’t serious and that he’ll be back on the court soon. San Antonio needs some help to reach that play-in scenario in the Western Conference, but the bigger concern now is what’s going on with White’s knee.