After suffering a lopsided 54-point loss to the Denver Nuggets, the Portland Trail Blazers responded with a strong rebound performance, defeating a shorthanded Phoenix Suns team on Sunday.
However, the victory came with concern, as Deni Avdija exited the game just 59 seconds after tipoff due to a lower back issue that had already placed his availability in question prior to the matchup, according to Joe Freeman of The Oregonian.
As Sean Highkin of The Rose Garden Report explains, Avdija’s back problems date back to January 11, when the injury first occurred.
Since then, the All-Star forward has dealt with several flare-ups, forcing him to miss 10 games over the past six weeks.
Even when he has returned to the lineup, Highkin notes that Avdija has not always appeared fully healthy during his limited appearances.
Interim head coach Tiago Splitter acknowledged the uncertainty surrounding the injury and emphasized the need for a deeper evaluation to determine the root cause of the recurring issue.
“I’m not a doctor, but yeah, we’ve got to see what’s going on,” Splitter said. “Dive deep and see what’s really happening.”
[td_flex_block_1 category_id="" custom_title="MORE FOR YOU" header_color="#e91e63" td_filter_default_txt="" tag_slug="" sort="random_7_day" tdc_css="eyJhbGwiOnsibWFyZ2luLXJpZ2h0IjoiMjUiLCJtYXJnaW4tYm90dG9tIjoiMjUiLCJtYXJnaW4tbGVmdCI6IjI1IiwicGFkZGluZy10b3AiOiIxMSIsInBhZGRpbmctcmlnaHQiOiIyNSIsInBhZGRpbmctYm90dG9tIjoiMTEiLCJwYWRkaW5nLWxlZnQiOiIyNSIsImJhY2tncm91bmQtY29sb3IiOiIjZjNmNGY2IiwiZGlzcGxheSI6IiIsIi0tdGRiLXNjcm9sbC1hbmltIjoibm9uZSJ9LCJwaG9uZSI6eyJtYXJnaW4tcmlnaHQiOiIwIiwibWFyZ2luLWxlZnQiOiIwIiwicGFkZGluZy1yaWdodCI6IjE1IiwicGFkZGluZy1sZWZ0IjoiMTUiLCJkaXNwbGF5IjoiIn0sInBob25lX21heF93aWR0aCI6NzY3fQ==" mx3f_title_font_transform="" mx3f_title_font_weight="700" title_tag="h3" all_modules_space="0" video_popup="" image_size="td_218x150" image_height="65" image_floated="eyJwaG9uZSI6ImZsb2F0X2xlZnQifQ==" autoplay_vid="" show_vid_t="none" modules_category="image" modules_category_margin="eyJhbGwiOiI1cHgiLCJwaG9uZSI6IjVweCJ9" modules_extra_cat="hide" show_author="none" show_date="none" show_com="none" show_review="none" show_excerpt="none" show_audio="none" show_btn="none" f_title_font_size="15" f_title_font_line_height="1.25" f_title_font_weight="600" f_title_font_spacing="-0.2" cat_bg="#e16e00" modules_divider="solid" category_ids="-4430,-5489" show_cat="" modules_on_row="eyJhbGwiOiIzMy4zMzMzMzMzMyUiLCJwaG9uZSI6IjEwMCUifQ==" limit="3" meta_info_align="" modules_divider_color="#333333" image_width="eyJhbGwiOiIxMDAiLCJwaG9uZSI6IjQwIn0=" meta_info_border_color="" modules_border_color="" modules_gap="15" m_padding="eyJwaG9uZSI6IjE1cHggMHB4IDE1cHggMHB4In0=" art_title="eyJwaG9uZSI6IjBweCAwcHggMHB4IDE1cHgifQ==" video_icon="eyJwaG9uZSI6IjIwIn0=" f_cat_font_size="eyJwaG9uZSI6IjgifQ=="]Highkin suggests that Portland may benefit from giving Avdija an extended period of rest rather than continuing to bring him back while the injury lingers.
With the league’s easiest remaining schedule based on opponent winning percentage and a likely play-in tournament position already within reach, the team may not need to rush its leading scorer back into action.
Ensuring that the 25-year-old is fully healthy for the final stretch of the season and potential postseason play should be the organization’s primary focus moving forward, according to Highkin.
