As the Portland Trail Blazers gear up for back-to-back games against the Denver Nuggets and Los Angeles Lakers, they'll now do it without point guard Damian Lillard. On Friday, ESPN's Chris Haynes reported (Lillard) is out on Friday and expected to miss Saturday's game.
Lillard suffered a right hamstring on Wednesday night and described to reporters how he could barely move in that game and became a decoy. While 24 hours of rest helped, given the nature of soft tissue injuries and how often hamstring strains can be aggravated, Portland opted to play it safe with its All Star guard and rest him over the weekend.
After Saturday, the Trail Blazers don't play again until Dec. 28 against the Philadelphia 76ers. So with the cautious approach, Portland buys Lillard a full week to rest and rehabilitate his hamstring with the medical staff. The team could even keep him out for the remainder of the month with only three games between now and Jan. 1.
As long as Lillard is out, C.J. McCollum will see a substantial uptick in his usage rate. The 26-year-old guard averages 21 points, four rebounds and nearly three assists per game on the season in nearly 37 minutes per game. For owners in season-long leagues, is point totals and assists could go up over the next week and he becomes a high-end DFS target for the next two games.
Shabazz Napier, who will likely start in Lillard's absence, is a value play on DraftKings and FanDuel this weekend. He should get enough looks and help make some plays for McCollum, to give DFS players a solid ROI.