Pelicans’ Alvarado back on court; out for play-in

The New Orleans Pelicans said Jose Alvarado, out since Feb. 27 with a stress reaction in his right tibia, has resumed on-court basketball activities but has not been cleared to return to game action just yet.

Pelicans executive vice president of basketball operations David Griffin said in a statement that Alvarado will miss the play-in game against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday and he is not expected to play for at least a week.

If the Pelicans defeat the Thunder, they’ll advance to face the loser of Tuesday’s Los Angeles Lakers–Minnesota Timberwolves game on Friday night.

In the event they get by that game and earn the No. 8 seed, Alvarado would likely miss the first two games of a first-round playoff series against the Denver Nuggets.

The Pelicans added “a specific timeline for his return will be announced at a later date.”

A spark off the bench for the Pelicans all season, Alvarado averaged 9.0 points, 3.0 assists and 1.1 steals in 61 games this season. He had played in 61 of a possible 62 games prior to his injury.