Jusuf Nurkic To Miss Clippers Game With Right Knee Inflammation
Jusuf Nurkic's healthy return from 10 weeks on the sideline didn't last long.
The Trail Blazers big man will miss Tuesday's game against the LA Clippers on Tuesday with right knee inflammation, the team announced on Monday afternoon.
Nurkic played 18 minutes in his team's romp over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Saturday, watching the fourth quarter from the bench with his fellow starters. Some extra rest was especially important for Nurkic considering he played 21 minutes against the Milwaukee Bucks on the first leg of Portland's back-to-back.
It bears reminding that the devastating injury that caused him to miss almost all of last season came in his left leg. About two months before then, on January 30, 2019, Nurkic sat out against the Utah Jazz with right knee soreness, but returned for the Blazers' next game.
In five appearances since coming back from a broken right wrist, Nurkic averaged 8.4 points, 7.2 rebounds and 3.0 assists in 19.6 minutes per game. He shot 48.3 percent from the field and 68.8 percent from the free throw line.
More importantly, Portland improved dramatically on defense with Nurkic on the floor. His defensive rating over the last five games was a stingy 101.9, per NBA.com/stats, second-best on the team behind Norman Powell.
Enes Kanter will start in Nurkic's place against the Clippers, and Terry Stotts will likely go back to small-ball lineups featuring Robert Covington at center. Harry Giles III could get some rotation burn if LA proves too big to downsize against, too.