The Portland Trail Blazers host the New Orleans Pelicans on Thursday night in a game that carries significant weight in the Western Conference play-in race. Portland has won seven of their last nine games and have improved to 39-38, just half a game behind the Los Angeles Clippers in the No. 8 seed.
They come into this one after an impressive 114-104 road win over the Clippers and already have a 2-1 season series advantage over New Orleans. The Pelicans are also on a five-game losing streak and are already out of playoff contention.
They suffered a lopsided 134-102 defeat against the Houston Rockets last time around and will once again be the underdogs for this one. Regardless, Portland has multiple injury concerns.
They will be without Jerami Grant due to a calf injury, joining the likes of Shaedon Sharpe and Damian Lillard as the confirmed absentees for this one. Meanwhile, New Orleans will be concerned about Trey Murphy III, who has missed the last three games and is once again listed as questionable on the official injury report due to his ankle injury.
Trey Murphy III’s injury status vs. Trail Blazers
Trey Murphy III’s questionable designation comes after he has already missed the last three games, and his absence has coincided with a sharp downturn for New Orleans. The Pelicans have dropped five straight games and have struggled to generate consistent offense without their leading scorer.
Murphy is averaging 21.7 points per game, making him the primary threat on a lineup that has struggled most of the season. The Trail Blazers have plenty of difficult matchups ahead and will be looking at this one as a must-win as they attempt to close the gap between them and the Clippers.
Regardless, the Trail Blazers have plenty of offensive talent even if Murphy ends up playing. Deni Advija is going at 23.1 points per game and produced almost a triple-double of 28 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists in the win against Houston.
Jrue Holiday returned with 30 points from the last game while Scoot Henderson and Toumani Camara have also been amongst points of late. Considering Portland's home advantage and the recent form of the two teams, the Trail Blazers enter this one as the obvious favorites.
Trail Blazers injury report
Jerami Grant — Out (right calf strain)
Damian Lillard — Out (left Achilles; injury management)
Shaedon Sharpe — Out (left fibula; stress reaction)
Vit Krejci — Out (left calf contusion)
Jayson Kent — Doubtful (G League; two-way)
Hansen Yang — Doubtful (G League; assignment)
Chris Youngblood — Doubtful (G League; two-way)
Pelicans injury report
Trey Murphy III — Questionable (right ankle sprain)
Karlo Matkovic — Questionable (low back spasms)
Bryce McGowens — Out (right small toe fracture)
