The Portland Trail Blazers released their injury report ahead of their New Year's Day matchup against the Phoenix Suns, and guard Shaedon Sharpe is set to rejoin the lineup:
Shaedon back. https://t.co/wIMww0KvB2
— Peter Sampson (@PeterSampson) January 1, 2024
Sharpe had missed the last five games for the Blazers as he dealt with a nagging hip injury. It seemed as though it was more of a pain tolerance issue than an acute injury and, in fact, Sharpe was out shooting around in pregame for each of the Blazers' last few home games despite being inactive.
That's the good news. The bad news is that the Blazers will still be without two other starters.
Center Deandre Ayton continues to deal with right knee tendonitis. This will be his fourth straight missed game. Ayton missed a total of six games in two different chunks for the Blazers in the month of December while dealing with the injury.
Perhaps most importantly, Anfernee Simons will miss his third straight game due to illness. The Blazers' leading scorer woke up last week feeling under the weather and has been forced to sit. No word on the type of illness he's dealing with or its severity.
Off of the bench, center Duop Reath continues to deal with a lower back strain. Reath was a late scratch in the Blazers' game against the San Antonio Spurs on Thursday. During warmups, he was seen leaning over and speaking to a trainer before exiting the court.
Ayton and Reath being out likely means that center Moses Brown will start again at center. He's had moments of solid rebounding for the Blazers in the last week, though he did get cooked off the floor in less than four minutes of action on Friday night. Fans will also likely get treated to a handful of minutes from new fan-favorite Abou Badji.
Sharpe will almost certainly start. So, the only major question left becomes whether Malcom Brogdon or Scoot Henderson gets the nod at point guard.
All will be revealed when the Blazers kick off a long road trip in Phoenix on New Year's Day.
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