Pelicans’ No. 13 pick Derik Queen goes through wrist surgical treatment, will
Derik Queen– the No. 13 pick that New Orleans quit a lot to move up and draft– has actually undergone surgery to fix a torn scapholunate ligament in his left wrist, the Pelicans have announced.Queen will be re-evaluated in 12 weeks, the group said. That timeline has him being re-evaluated during training school and possibly near the start of the NBA season. That indicates he will likely be not able to physically participate in all of his very first NBA training camp and could be out up until the start of the NBA season, depending upon how his recovery process goes.Queen suffered the wrist injury throughout the Pelicans’Summertime League game versus
the Path Blazers on July 15. As kept in mind by Jeff Stotts of In Street Clothes, this is the exact same ligament surgery the Thunder’s Jalen Williams had after the season( and champion parade ). The scaphoid ligament, situated in the middle of the wrist, links the scaphoid and lunate bones, playing an important role in wrist stability. Spraining or tearing the ligament hurts, which is why Williams had more than 20 pain-killing injections to survive the playoffs. Queen showed off an impressive offensive skill set throughout NBA Summertime League, averaging 14 points and 10.7 rebounds a game, and gathering three double-doubles. The No. 13 pick Derik Queen with the spin move and rating The New Orleans novice has 12 points & 12 rebounds! Lakers-Pelicans
on ESPN2 pic.twitter.com/uyrF3QrxKn!.?.!— NBA (@NBA )July 13, 2025 However, Queen had 17 turnovers in those three games; he was passive for stretches and didn’t play with much physicality, which led to some genuine struggles on the defensive end. His acknowledgment and dedication on defense were a concern, and it could limit his playing time once he gets healthy and the season starts. The challenge for Pelicans coach Willie Green is where Queen fits in a frontcourt rotation with Zion Williamson, Yves Missi and Kevon Looney.Health is going to be important to the Pelicans’success this season, and they are now heading into training camp with Queen, Trey Murphy III, Herbert Jones, and Dejounte Murray all coming off of surgery( Murray will miss a portion of the season
due to a torn Achilles). The Pelicans traded the No. 23 pick this season and, more importantly, a highly important unguarded first-round pick in 2026, to Atlanta to move up to No. 13 and get Queen. If the Pelicans do not make the playoffs– a really unique possibility in a very deep West, particularly if they can’t stay healthy– that could be a lotto pick next June, perhaps a high one, in what is considered a deep 2026 draft. Around the league, trading away that choice was seen as most likely the worst trade of the offseason.It puts a great deal of pressure on General Supervisor Joe Dumars and the Pelicans ‘front workplace for Queen to be worthwhile of the trade. His missing a minimum of part of training school is not ideal for this.