by E.J. Liddell suffered an injury in last nights Summer League game against the Atlanta Hawks in the third quarter, enduring a torn ACL on his right knee. Liddell injured his right knee earlier in that game in the first quarter and went out of the game to get checked and cleared.
The Pelicans team doctors cleared him and he was allowed back into the game. In the third quarter Liddell was going for a pass and when that happen he was pushed to the point where it made him lose his balance, causing him to fall and land awkwardly on his knee, with his knee going the opposite direction.
E.J. Liddell was ready to prove a lot of people wrong, following draft night. Liddell was a projected first round pick out of Ohio State and he ended up falling in the second round, getting picked 41st overall.
Liddell had this to say on draft night, ” I’ve been proving people wrong my whole life so this isn’t anything new, I’m gonna keep doing that until the day I’m gone. I’m happy they took a chance on me and I appreciate them for the opportunity.”
In College, Liddell was a 2x All-Big Ten player and also a Big Ten All-Defense while averaging 19.4 points per game, 7.9 rebounds per game and 2.5 assists per game. With those numbers and credentials, it’s a wonder why he fell to the second round, late second round at that.
Many people including E.J. Liddell were wondering why he was picked so late and with that chip on his shoulder, he was ready to prove teams wrong and that he shouldn’t have been a second round pick.
In E.J. Liddell’s first summer league game against the Portland Trailblazers he was only able to score 2 points, shooting 1/6 and having 4 rebounds. His second game in the Summer League was going better but it was cut short because it was the game where he suffered an injury against the Atlanta Hawks.
In that game Liddell had 6 points, 4 rebounds and 2 assists while shooting 3/3. That is not a bad game considering he suffered an injury in the first quarter and third quarter. Even with that being said, it still might not be an impressive two games for him from the Pelicans point of view.
E.J. Liddell will have to prove himself once more when he comes back from his injury. With him being a rookie and a second-round pick while suffering an ACL injury this early in his career. He will have to overcome adversity and have to work harder than he ever has to make sure he can come back better than ever, also while having to prove himself to the Pelicans front office that it is too early to count him out.
That should not be a problem for E.J. Liddell, he has been proving people wrong his whole life and he will continue to do that.
