Damian Lillard out for Portland Trail Blazers’ game vs. Philadelphia 76ers with abdominal strain
Lillard, the NBA’s third-leading scorer, indicated that he considered sitting out Portland’s previous game Tuesday against the Wizards, saying he “felt like I could barely move out there to start the game.”
Lillard initially was listed as questionable against Philadelphia on the NBA’s official injury report, but the Blazers ruled him out later Thursday afternoon. Coach Terry Stotts said Lillard is day-to-day and the team will wait to see how he feels on Saturday ahead of their game against the New York Knicks.
Portland starters CJ McCollum (foot), Jusuf Nurkic (wrist) and Derrick Jones Jr. (foot) all are sidelined with long-term injuries, and swingman Nassir Little (knee) also has been ruled out Thursday against the Eastern Conference-leading Sixers.
Philadelphia will also be short-handed Thursday, with point guard Ben Simmons being ruled out with left calf tightness after being listed as probable earlier in the day.
Lillard scored 32 points Tuesday to lead injury-plagued Portland to a 132-121 victory in Washington. He said after the game that he was “pushing and fighting” throughout the contest because he “knew how important this one was for our season.”
Lillard, 30, is averaging 29.1 points and 7.3 assists — the eighth-best mark in the NBA — in 20 games this season.