PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) -Thanks to the Colorado Avalanche, the Portland Trail Blazers can give Brandon Roy an extra day of rest.
So just how did the NHL and the NBA teams collide?
The Blazers’ first-round playoff series against the Phoenix Suns was set for Sunday to accommodate the series between the Nuggets and the Jazz – which had to be scheduled around the Colorado Avalanche’s NHL playoff game against San Jose on Sunday.
In short, it means that Portland’s injured All-Star will have another day to – possibly – get ready for the Suns.
Roy has a torn meniscus in his right knee which kept him out of the final two games of the regular season. He will eventually need surgery to repair his knee, but doctors have told him that he can’t make the injury any worse by playing on it.
So Roy said he was going to try to play if he isn’t a liability to his team.
the knee on Friday or Saturday. If there’s no pain and swelling, he may play Sunday, coach Nate McMillan said.
McMillan is well aware that Roy’s “will-he-or-won’t he” status is drawing all the attention. But for the injury-plagued Trail Blazers, it is almost routine.
“I think a lot of people are writing us off already and I think a lot of that is due to the fact that Brandon – people don’t know whether Brandon is going to play so they’re not giving us a chance,” McMillan said. “We’ve been faced with that all season long so here we go again.”
Portland’s starting lineup was completely different in the opener than it was for the regular-season finale against Golden State. In all, the Blazers have used 16 different starting lineups.
Center Greg Oden and Joel Przybilla both sustained injuries that required season-ending surgery. Forward Nicolas Batum missed the first half of the season after shoulder surgery, and swingman Rudy Fernandez had midseason back troubles. Former forward Travis Outlaw, who was traded to the Clippers, sat out for a time with a foot injury.
Roy missed more that a dozen games with a sore hamstring earlier this year before the meniscus tear was discovered.
In all, 13 Blazers missed a combined 311 regular-season games because of injuries, second only to the Warriors this season. Only guard Andre Miller and forward Martell Webster have played in all 82 games.
latest absence was forward LaMarcus Aldridge, who didn’t play against the Warriors after spending the previous night in the hospital with a gastrointestinal virus. He is expected to be recovered by Sunday.
“At the end of the day you still have to go out and play,” Webster said. “We’re going to rally together and play the game.”
Portland finished the season 50-32, hitting the 50-win mark for the second straight season. The Blazers wound up with the sixth seed in the Western Conference.
Third-seeded Phoenix finished 54-28. The Suns have come on late, going 23-6 since the All-Star break.
The Blazers have gone 19-8 since the break. McMillan gave his team the day off on Thursday.
Portland won the season series against the Suns 2-1.
The Blazers made it to the playoffs last season and fell to the Houston Rockets four games to two. With their youth and talent, they were expected to go further this season.
Until all the injuries happened. Now they head into the playoffs as the decided underdog, and Roy’s possible absence merely amplifies that role.
“We’re not making no excuses,” center Marcus Camby said. “There’s no excuses if you’re going to win the series. So we’re coming in confident.”
Add A Comment