Portland Trail Blazers shooting guard CJ McCollum will not play during Sunday's matchup against the Miami Heat due to illness.
Accorsing to Casey Holdahl of Blazers.com, McCollum has not been feeling well for a few days now and has already taken meds. Unfortunately, his condition has not improved.
CJ McCollum (illness) is out for tonight’s game vs. Heat.
— Casey Holdahl (@CHold) January 5, 2020
McCollum says he’s been feeling crummy for a few days now, been taking meds, but hasn’t improved.
— Casey Holdahl (@CHold) January 5, 2020
Sunday will officially mark McCollum's first inactive of the season. The 28-year-old scored 24 points on 10-of-18 shooting during Friday's win over the Washington Wizards.
McCollum is having another fine offensive camapaign. After signing a three-year, $100 million extension this past summer, McCollum is averaging 22.3 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.8 assists while also posting the third-highest Effective Field Goal percentage (.526) of his career.
As good as he has been offensively, however, McCollum continues to be a liability on the defensive end. Both McCollum and Damian Lillard rank among the worst defensive guards in the league in terms of defensive rating, according to NBA.com.
Opposing offenses routinely attack McCollum to his left, and he struggles to stay in front of quicker and more physical guards at the two spot.
Portland's defensive struggles are not limited to their backcourt stars, though. Rodney Hood can score in bunches coming off the bench, but he was also a liability prior to injury in early December. Carmelo Anthony can fill it up and the effort is there defensively, but he simply does not have the same quickness or instincts to guard on his own in the post.
The Blazers rank 20th in defensive rating, per Basketball Reference. They do enough to score on a nightly basis, but it will not matter if they cannot get stops moving forward.
Portland (15-21) will hope that a day off will help CJ McCollum get back on the floor as they look to stay in the playoff picture in the tough Western Conference.
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