Portland Trail Blazers All-Star Damian Lillard is hoping to make his return for Saturday's road game against the Cavs.
However, Lillard knows he needs to be cautious:
Thread on Damian Lillard back injury: He says he is hopeful to return Saturday at Cleveland. "I would be doing a disservice to my health if I just went out and played. It will stick around. Where we are now, the best thing is to get healthy, then we make our push," he said.
— Jason Quick (@jwquick) November 21, 2019
Lillard is currently dealing with a back issue. The former No. 6 overall pick has already been ruled out for Thursday night's game against the Milwaukee Bucks. It will be the second game he has missed due to the ailment.
With Lillard out, new Blazer Carmelo Anthony will likely see a big role in the offense yet again. Melo took 14 shots in his Blazers debut, which was a 115-104 loss to the New Orleans Pelicans.
The fact that Lillard seems to be on the mend is great news for a struggling Blazers team. In 14 appearances this season, the 29-year-old point guard has racked up averages of 28.6 points on 45.2 percent shooting from the field (35.7 percent from beyond the arc), 7.1 assists, 4.9 rebounds and 1.1 steals in 38.3 minutes per outing. His 38.3 minutes per game were leading the NBA.
Lillard's back spasms began earlier this month against the Toronto Raptors. He played in two games since the injury, but he struggled from the field. Perhaps this bit of rest will have served him well:
Lillard has been experiencing back issues since the Toronto game. He’s tried to fight through it, but you can see it in his shooting, especially from three. Just hasn’t been comfortable.
— Casey Holdahl (@CHold) November 19, 2019
Thursday night's Blazers-Bucks game is set to tip inside Fiserv Forum at 8:00 p.m. ET, with TNT having live broadcast coverage.
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