Trail Blazers at Hawks
LaMarcus Aldridge is close to returning from a back injury and could be in the lineup Thursday when the slumping Portland Trail Blazers visit the Atlanta Hawks. The All-Star forward has missed the last seven games and Portland has lost nine of its last 13 games and badly could use the presence of its best player. Atlanta has lost four straight games after being routed by the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday and resides in eighth place in the Eastern Conference.
The Hawks are just two games ahead of the New York Knicks for the final playoff spot and have lost 18 of their last 24 games. Atlanta trailed by three points early in the third quarter on Wednesday before the Timberwolves dominated the rest of the game and secured a 107-83 victory. Aldridge said after Tuesday’s loss to Orlando that the team’s slide is making him want to return sooner rather than later but that the club’s medical staff will make the call on whether or not he will play against the Hawks. “We need L.A.,” center Robin Lopez told reporters. “In order for us to be at our best, he has to be on the court with us. He’s our leader.”
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, CSN Northwest (Portland), SportSouth (Atlanta)
ABOUT THE TRAIL BLAZERS (45-27): Portland has lost the first three outings of a five-game road trip and its month-long woes have allowed sixth-place Golden State to move within a half-game in the Western Conference playoff race. Teams like Dallas, Memphis and Phoenix are fighting for the final two playoff spots and point guard Damian Lillard remains confident that the Trail Blazers won’t slip to the point where they are battling for a spot. “As long as we stay focused on the fact that we can control our own destiny because we can, that’s what we’re going to do,” Lillard told reporters. “We’re going to keep fighting and find a way to get out of this hole we’re in.”
ABOUT THE HAWKS (31-39): Atlanta committed 26 turnovers – leading to 32 Minnesota points – in Wednesday’s sloppy effort and coach Mike Budenholzer is running out of motivational buttons to push. “I think to a certain degree each guy has just got to find it in him,” Budenholzer said afterward. “And I think the group has got to find the energy that the group can build. We’ve spent most of this season playing with very good energy, so I think there’s a lot of things we can pull on a reference to how we want to play and (this game) would not be one of those nights.”
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Portland has won three of the last four meetings and rolled to a 102-78 home win on March 5.
2. Hawks G Kyle Korver (back) is expected to miss his fifth straight game.
3. Trail Blazers F Nicolas Batum is averaging 13.3 points and 12 rebounds with seven double-doubles in March.