Portland finally has some good news on the injury front.
CJ McCollum, who has not played in eight weeks due to a hairline fracture in his left foot, is not on the Blazers’ injury report for the team’s nationally televised game against New Orleans on Wednesday (PHT). The long-time Blazers guard was enjoying a career year, averaging 26.7 points on 47.3% shooting, before suffering the injury on Jan. 16 against Atlanta.
Portland has managed to stay well within the Western Conference playoff race despite a rash of injuries to McCollum, Jusuf Nurkic, Zach Collins, and Harry Giles. All-Star guard Damian Lillard has upped his game in their absence, averaging 31.5 points, 8.5 assists, and 4.2 rebounds since McCollum went down for the sixth-place Blazers.
Portland has not missed the playoffs since drafting McCollum 10th overall in 2013, a stretch that has made him and Lillard synonymous with the franchise and includes a trip to the conference finals in 2019.
Portland's high-scoring backcourt is set to be restored for the sixth-place Blazers.
