Trail Blazers at Knicks
Portland guard Damian Lillard sidestepped serious injury and will be in the starting lineup when the Trail Blazers visit the New York Knicks on Sunday. Lillard jammed his right hand late in Thursday’s victory over the Indiana Pacers and two examinations determined he sprained two fingers – the middle and ring. “I got fouled and got off-balance and my hand just got caught underneath me,” Lillard told reporters. “Jammed it pretty good. After that I was just trying to make sure it wasn’t broke.”
Portland has won 12 of its last 13 games and has won all eight contests against Eastern Conference foes as it begins a five-game road swing. New York has lost seven straight games after falling to Charlotte on Friday, a contest the Knicks trailed by 20 late in the third quarter and rallied to take the lead before Hornets guard Kemba Walker made the winning shot as time expired. “A loss is a loss, and you never feel good about a loss,” New York forward Carmelo Anthony told reporters afterward.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, CSN Northwest (Portland), MSG (New York)
ABOUT THE TRAIL BLAZERS (15-4): Forward LaMarcus Aldridge has posted double-doubles in six of the past seven games and passed Mychal Thompson for third place on Portland’s all-time rebounds list. Aldridge, who is averaging 22.2 points and 9.8 rebounds, has 4,885 rebounds in his tenure with the Trail Blazers. “It’s an honor. I’ve worked hard here,” Aldridge told reporters. “I think the organization has definitely believed in me since Day One. Just to pass these guys and have these type of marks in the organization, it’s big time.”
ABOUT THE KNICKS (4-17): New York continues to struggle under first-year coach Derek Fisher and is just 3-8 at home. Anthony had 32 points in the loss to Charlotte, bouncing back from a porous 4-of-19 shooting performance against Cleveland one night earlier when he scored a season-worst nine points. Anthony was the only starter to reach double figures against the Hornets with guards J.R. Smith (14 points) and Tim Hardaway (13) doing so off the bench.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Portland has won the last four meetings.
2. Knicks SG Iman Shumpert is 22-of-83 shooting over the last nine games, reaching double figures just once during the stretch.
3. Lillard is averaging 20.5 points and 6.5 assists in four career outings against New York.