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NBA Postseason Expected To Resume On Saturday

August 28th, 2020 at 6:41am CST by Luke Adams

AUGUST 28, 6:41am: Reports from Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle and Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press, among others, continue to point to Saturday as the day when the NBA’s postseason is on track to resume. We’re still waiting for official word from the league and the NBPA, but it appears increasingly unlikely that Friday’s games will be played as scheduled.

AUGUST 27, 1:28pm: NBA spokesperson Mike Bass has issued a statement confirming that Thursday’s games have been postponed and indicating that the league is hopeful to resume play either Friday or Saturday.

As reported by Vincent Goodwill of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link) and confirmed by Bass, a meeting will take place today at 5:00pm eastern time to discuss the resumption.

Two players from each remaining playoff team, the owners of those 13 teams, commissioner Adam Silver, NBPA executive director Michele Roberts, and Hornets owner Michael Jordan (chair of the labor relations committee) will take part in that meeting, per Goodwill.

AUGUST 27, 1:07pm: The NBA playoffs are expected to resume on Saturday, according to Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer (Twitter link).

Following Wednesday’s boycotts, NBA players decided today that they would resume the season. However, Thursday’s games are being postponed and it sounds like Friday’s will be as well.

According to Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe (Twitter link), the Celtics/Raptors second-round series that had been scheduled to begin on Thursday is now expected to tip off on Sunday. Tania Ganguli of The Los Angeles Times notes (via Twitter) that nothing is official yet, but says it sounds like the Lakers and Trail Blazers will play Game 5 of their first-round series on Saturday.

While no other dates have been confirmed so far, it seems safe to assume that the games originally scheduled for Wednesday would take place on Saturday, with Thursday’s contests being rescheduled to Sunday.

That would mean that Game 5 in two other playoff series – Bucks/Magic and Rockets/Thunder – would take place on Saturday, with the Jazz/Nuggets and Clippers/Mavericks playing Game 6 of their respective series on Sunday.

With meetings between players and team owners scheduled to take place later today, we’ll have to wait for official word from the NBA before locking anything in.

Ariza Talks Blazers In Orlando

August 27th, 2020 at 9:13pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Trail Blazers starting small forward Trevor Ariza told ESPN’s Jackie MacMullan that his decision to opt out of the NBA’s restart to spend time with his son was worth it, but that it’s been tough to watch his teammates from afar. “Man, the word ‘hard’ doesn’t even begin to describe it,” Ariza said. “This is what I was born to do, to play basketball. I’ve been doing it my whole life. And to know my team has a chance to compete for a championship, and I’m not with them. … It burns me up inside.” Ariza also confirmed that he briefly explored the idea of rejoining the Blazers once his visitation period with his son was over, but that the NBA made it clear it wouldn’t be permitted.

Damian Lillard Leaving Campus Due To Knee Injury

August 27th, 2020 at 2:17pm CST by Luke Adams

2:17pm: Lillard isn’t expected to require surgery on his injured knee, a source tells Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated (Twitter link).

7:00am: Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard is leaving the NBA’s Walt Disney World campus on Thursday to return to Portland, where he’ll undergo further examination of his injured right knee, the team announced (via Twitter).

Lillard was diagnosed with a right knee sprain after leaving Game 4 and had been ruled out for Game 5 before it was postponed. A Tuesday report suggested the All-Star guard was unlikely to return in the first round even if Portland had been able to force a Game 6 or Game 7, since he was unable to extend his right leg.

With the status of Game 5 still up in the air, it’s unclear how Lillard’s availability may be impacted. The NBA’s protocols state that players who leave the campus for medical exams or treatment aren’t necessarily subject to a full four days of quarantine if and when they return, but the Blazers star may not be healthy enough to play again this season anyway.

The team said in its statement that Lillard’s availability to return to the Orlando campus is “yet to be determined,” and that further updates will provided as necessary.

Lillard had been one of the NBA’s standout players since the season resumed in July. He earned bubble MVP honors by averaging 37.6 PPG and 9.6 APG on .497/.436/.888 shooting in the Blazers’ eight seeding games, then led the team to a win over Memphis in the Western Conference play-in game. Following his scorching-hot start this summer, Lillard has slowed down against the Lakers, in part due to health issues. Before injuring his knee in Game 4, he dislocated his left index finger in Game 2.

Players Decide To Resume Playoffs; Thursday’s Games To Be Postponed

August 27th, 2020 at 11:01am CST by Luke Adams

The three NBA playoff games scheduled to take place on Thursday will be postponed, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter links). However, players have decided to resume the postseason and discussions are underway about when that will happen, Wojnarowski reports.

Games appear likely to resume as soon as Friday, per Shams Charania of The Athletic and Jeff Goodman of Stadium (Twitter links).

[UPDATE: NBA Hopes To Resume Postseason By Saturday]

According to Charania (Twitter link), NBA players who met today want to find “new and improved ways” to make social justice statements as they prepare to restart play.

Another meeting will take place today on the Orlando campus at 4:00 pm eastern time, with two players from each team participating, per Goodman and Tim MacMahon of ESPN (Twitter links). The goal of that meeting will be to formulate a specific action plan to address racial injustice issues and to work out the logistics of restarting play, a source tells MacMahon (Twitter link).

A meeting of NBA owners and players is also set up for later today, Wojnarowski and Marc Spears of ESPN report (via Twitter). It sounds like that will be a separate meeting, though it figures to focus on similar issues.

“The bubble is about more than just crowning a champion,” one veteran player told Spears (Twitter link). “More so now than ever. It felt like the message was fading. Hopeful this can create a new level of activism and commitment from our owners, (the) league, (and) teams towards real change.”

After the Bucks decided not to play Game 5 of their first-round series against the Magic on Wednesday to protest social and racial injustices, the Rockets, Thunder, Lakers, and Trail Blazers followed suit, and the NBA postponed those games.

Today’s contests between the Nuggets and Jazz, Celtics and Raptors, and Mavericks and Clippers will also need to be rescheduled. Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press (Twitter link) hears that one “common-sense” scenario being considered is to simply push each game back by two days, from Wednesday to Friday and Thursday to Saturday.

Following Wednesday’s boycott, players gathered last night to discuss next steps and that meeting reportedly got “emotional.” Players from the Lakers and Clippers voted in favor of ending the season, while other teams voted to continue playing and some players – including CJ McCollum – cautioned against giving up the platform afforded by the NBA’s bubble.

After further discussions both last night and this morning, LeBron James and other prominent players changed their positions, agreeing that it’s in players’ best interest to finish the season, tweets Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports.

Sources tell Charania that players today discussed the sacrifices they’ve made to reach this point of the 2019/20 season, as well as the sense of normalcy that will be gained when family members are allowed to enter the Orlando campus next week (Twitter link). Everyone was ultimately in agreement on restarting the season, one player told Goodman (Twitter link).

NBA Says Wednesday’s Games Will Be Rescheduled; Players To Discuss Next Steps

August 26th, 2020 at 4:23pm CST by Luke Adams

The NBA has announced in a press release that all three Game Fives scheduled to take place on Wednesday have been postponed and will be rescheduled.

Bucks players led a boycott of this afternoon’s game against the Magic, with the Thunder, Rockets, Trail Blazers, and Lakers quickly deciding to follow suit. The protests stem from a desire to raise awareness of social and racial injustices and enact change, and come in response to the recent police shooting of Jacob Blake, a 29-year-old Black man, in Kenosha, Wisconsin.

According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter), the NBA, team owners, and front offices didn’t see today’s wave of player boycotts coming — as a few hours ago, they expected all of today’s games to take place.

NBA players have called a meeting for Wednesday night in Orlando to discuss and determine potential next steps, sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

As Chris Mannix of SI.com notes (via Twitter), some teams – including the Raptors – have discussed the possibility of leaving the bubble altogether. Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe (Twitter link) hears that the Raptors and Celtics are leaning toward not playing Game 1 of their second-round series on Thursday.

Thunder, Rockets, Lakers, Blazers To Boycott Wednesday’s Games

August 26th, 2020 at 3:56pm CST by Luke Adams

In the wake of the Bucks’ decision to boycott Game 5 of their first-round playoff series against the Magic, the Thunder and Rockets will follow suit and boycott Game 5 of their series this evening, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (via Twitter).

The Lakers and Trail Blazers, who were scheduled to play Game 5 of their series later tonight, are also boycotting, according to Charania (via Twitter). Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports first reported (via Twitter) that Portland and L.A. were leaning toward not playing tonight’s game.

The protests are a response to the recent police shooting of Jacob Blake, a 29-year-old Black man, in Kenosha, Wisconsin.

The Raptors and Celtics, who are scheduled to play Game 1 of their second-round series on Thursday, had been the first teams to broach the topic of a boycott. Raptors guard Fred VanVleet explained the thinking behind the idea to reporters earlier this week.

“We knew coming here or not coming here was not going to stop anything, but I think ultimately playing or not playing puts pressure on somebody,” VanVleet said, per Malika Andrews and Tim Bontemps of eSPN. “So, for example, this happened in Kenosha, Wisconsin, if I’m correct? Would it be nice if, in a perfect world, we all say we’re not playing, and the owner of the Milwaukee Bucks — that’s going to trickle down. If he steps up to the plate and puts pressure on the district attorney’s office, and state’s attorney, and governors, and politicians there to make real change and get some justice.

“I know it’s not that simple. But, at the end of the day, if we’re gonna sit here and talk about making change, then at some point we’re gonna have to put our nuts on the line and actually put something up to lose, rather than just money or visibility.”

Bringing attention to social justice issues and systemic racism was among the players’ primary goals when they agreed to the NBA’s restart plan this summer. However, in the wake of the latest shooting of a Black man by police, a number of players felt as if their efforts to raise awareness and enact change were being overshadowed by on-court results and have decided to change their tactics.

Lillard Unlikely To Return Even If Blazers Extend Series

August 25th, 2020 at 4:56pm CST by Luke Adams

Meanwhile, Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard, who has already been ruled out for Game 5 due to a right knee sprain, is unlikely to return this series even if Portland can extend it by a game or two, tweets Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports. According to Haynes, Lillard is currently unable to extend his right leg.

Damian Lillard To Miss Game 5 Due To Knee Sprain

August 25th, 2020 at 3:44pm CST by Luke Adams

After undergoing a second MRI on Tuesday, star guard Damian Lillard has been diagnosed with a right knee sprain and will miss Game 5 against the Lakers on Wednesday, the Trail Blazers announced today (Twitter link).

With the Lakers holding a 3-1 lead over Portland in the first-round series, it’s possible we won’t see Lillard return to action again this season — the Blazers figure to be significant underdogs on Wednesday with Lillard out and backcourt mate CJ McCollum still playing through a fracture in his back.

Lillard has been one of the NBA’s standout players since the season resumed in July. He earned bubble MVP honors by averaging 37.6 PPG and 9.6 APG on .497/.436/.888 shooting in the Blazers’ eight seeding games, then led the team to a win over Memphis in the Western Conference play-in game. However, after claiming the No. 8 seed and upsetting the Lakers in Game 1, Portland has seemed to run out of gas.

Following his scorching-hot start this summer, Lillard has slowed down over the last three games, which can be attributed at least in part to health issues. Before injuring his knee in Game 4, the All-Star guard dislocated his left index finger in Game 2.

With Lillard unavailable, the Blazers figure to lean more heavily on Anfernee Simons and Gary Trent Jr. One of the two guards figures to replace Lillard in the starting lineup.

Lillard To Get Second MRI On Knee; Davis’ Back “Doing Fine”

August 25th, 2020 at 9:25am CST by Luke Adams

Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard left Monday’s blowout loss to the Lakers in the third quarter due to a right knee injury and didn’t return, undergoing an MRI after the game. However, according to the team, the results of that MRI were inconclusive, and Lillard will undergo a second MRI on Tuesday afternoon (Twitter link).

Lillard was already banged up, dealing with a dislocated left finger as he tries to lead the Blazers to a first-round upset over the top-seeded Lakers. However, with Portland now facing a 3-1 deficit and the All-Star guard battling a knee issue as well, it will be interesting to see whether he suits up for Game 5 on Wednesday. While Lillard will surely do all he can to play, the Blazers are now an extreme long shot and it may be in their best long-term interests to play it safe with their franchise player.

Meanwhile, an All-Star on the other side of the court also left Monday’s game and didn’t return, as Lakers big man Anthony Davis was said to be dealing with back spasms. Davis downplayed the injury after the game though, telling reporters that his back “is doing fine,” per Dave McMenamin of ESPN.

For now, it doesn’t sound as if Davis’ availability for Game 5 is in jeopardy. If he plays as effectively on Wednesday as he did in Game 4, when he was a +37 in just 18 minutes, the Lakers can afford to reduce his minutes a little.

Heavy Burden Is Beginning To Wear On Jusuf Nurkic

August 23rd, 2020 at 11:02am CST by Arthur Hill

The strain of returning to a high-pressure environment 17 months after suffering a compound fracture in his leg is beginning to show on Trail Blazers center Jusuf Nurkic, observes Anthony Slater of The Athletic. Players are usually brought along slowly after such a serious injury, but Nurkic is being asked to log heavy minutes in a playoff setting. Slater notes that an injury to Zach Collins and a lack of production from Hassan Whiteside leaves Portland with no other options.