An ankle injury will keep New Orleans Hornets guard Chris Paul sidelined for at least a month.

An MRI on Thursday revealed Paul has a severely sprained ankle that will take a minimum of four weeks to heal, team spokesman Scott Hall said Friday.

Chris Paul, last season's NBA rookie of the year, leads the New Orleans Hornets in both points and assists.
(Issac Baldizon/NBAE via Getty Images)

Paul injured the ankle when he stepped on the foot of Seattle's Johan Petro late in the first quarter of a game in Seattle on Tuesday.

Paul — last season's NBA rookie of the year — is the Hornets' leading scorer, averaging 18.4 points a game. He also leads the team in assists with 9.0 per game.

The Hornets have several top players out with injuries. Guard Peja Stojakovic is out for up to three months after back surgery, forward David West could miss two months after elbow surgery and key reserve Bobby Jackson will miss another two weeks while recovering from a cracked rib.

Jannero Pargo is expected to replace Paul as the team's starting point guard. In 28 games, the past two as a starter, Pargo is averaging 9.9 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.2 assists in 23.6 minutes a game.