The Portland Trail Blazers released their first injury report for their Wednesday season opener against the Phoenix Suns. The surprising headliner is Deni Avdija, who is currently listed as questionable due to right ankle soreness.
Here is the injury report in full:
OUT
Branden Carlson (Concussion Protocol)
Shaedon Sharpe (R Meniscus)
Chris Youngblood (L Ankle Soreness)
QUESTIONABLE
Deni Avdija (R Ankle Soreness)
Micah Potter (Illness)
According to Blazers insider Sean Highkin of Rose Garden Report, Micah Nori "strongly hinted" that the Blazers starting lineup would be the one used in their preseason matchup against the Golden State Warriors: Ja Morant, Damian Lillard, Toumani Camara, Deni Avdija, and Donovan Clingan.
Should Avdija not be able to suit up, the silver lining is that Jrue Holiday is as good a bench option as any to slide into that starting unit.
Blazers may have to rely on Jrue Holiday's versatility at forward
Portland would be even more undersized at that point with a three-guard lineup, but general manager Joe Cronin has stated this offseason that the Blazers would be using Holiday more at forward. We could see that be the case as soon as Wednesday should Avdija be out or limited in any capacity.
The Suns' forward duo of Miles Bridges and Dillon Brooks isn't necessarily intimidating against Camara and Holiday in that scenario, and in fact could even still be an advantage for Portland.
They Blazers have already lost Shaedon Sharpe for roughly six months after undergoing surgery for a torn lateral meniscus in his right knee. Now, Portland is already seeing its newest All-Star pop up on the injury report before even playing a meaningful regular season game.
Avdija dealt with a lingering back injury that affected his play down the stretch of last season. He specifically was far less efficient from three-point range. That became an even bigger problem as Portland lacked the playmakers to compensate. That's no longer the case after Cronin brought in all these ballhandlers and playmakers, highlighted by Lillard and Morant now finding their way into this revamped backcourt.
Hopefully Avdija is able to upgrade his injury status before tip-off, which is 7:00 pm PT at the Moda Center. Should he not suit up, his next opportunity would come Friday in a road game against the Sacramento Kings.
It may be the season opener, but any game in the Western Conference against teams in Portland's tier like Phoenix is even more important to win. Ideally, they could have Avdija suit up given the potential playoff implications down the road, especially with the next matchup coming against a rebuilding Kings team.
Does Portland really even need him for that one?
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