Portland Trail Blazers big man Enes Kanter suffered a separated shoulder during Game 5 of his team's first-round playoff series against the Oklahoma City Thunder, and his status for Game 1 of the Blazers' second-round matchup against the Denver Nuggets on Monday night is in question.
Kanter says he is not sure if he will play in the series opener, as he is still experiencing quite a bit of pain in doing basic things like sleeping and taking his shirt on and off, according to Blazers beat writer Casey Holdahl.
The 26-year-old has been huge in Portland's playoff success thus far this spring, as he is averaging 13.2 points, 10.2 rebounds and 2.0 assists over 29.4 minutes per game while shooting 57.4 percent from the floor and 80 percent from the free-throw line.
With Jusuf Nurkic sidelined due to a gruesome broken leg injury he suffered last month, Kanter's injury becomes all the more significant for a Blazers team that doesn't have a whole lot of muscle up front as it is.
Against a Nuggets team that employs a frontcourt of Nikola Jokic and Paul Millsap, Kanter's presence will be key for the Blazers to have a chance of winning the series.
Portland acquired Kanter back in mid-February after he was waived by the New York Knicks.
In 23 games for the Blazers during the regular season, he averaged 13.1 points and 8.6 boards across 22.3 minutes a night while making 57.7 percen of his field goal attempts and 73.5 percent of his foul shots.
Now in his eighth year in the league, Kanter is set to become a free agent this summer.
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