Trail Blazers at Clippers
All-Star point guard Damian Lillard has a chance to become the second-leading scorer in franchise history when the Portland Trail Blazers visit the Los Angeles Clippers on Tuesday. Lillard (12,540 career points) needs 23 to pass LaMarcus Aldridge (12,562) and will likely someday threaten the franchise mark held by Hall of Famer Clyde Drexler (18,040).
The Clippers are scorching hot with five straight wins and eight in their last 10 games, and moved into sixth place in the Western Conference by rolling to a 140-115 home victory over the Boston Celtics on Monday. "We're in a good space right now and playing really good basketball," reserve guard Lou Williams said in a postgame interview with NBATV. Portland stands fifth in the West but is 2-3 following a five-game winning streak and is beginning a three-game road trip that includes visits to New Orleans and San Antonio. The Trail Blazers posted a 127-120 victory over the Phoenix Suns on Saturday with shooting guard CJ McCollum leading the way with 26 points on 11-of-14 shooting.
TV: 10:30 p.m. ET, NBCS Northwest (Portland), Prime Ticket (Los Angeles)
ABOUT THE TRAIL BLAZERS (40-26): Lillard, who recorded his fifth career 50-point outing when he scored 51 against Oklahoma City on Friday, has a 31.3 average in three meetings against the Clippers this season. Shooting guard CJ McCollum, who has scored 25 or more points in each of the past three games, has also fared well against Los Angeles by averaging 22.7 points and 6.3 rebounds this season. Backup guard Seth Curry matched his season best of 22 points against the Suns after failing to reach double digits in each of the previous five games.
ABOUT THE CLIPPERS (39-29): Sixth Man Lou Williams scored 34 points against Boston and became the all-time leading bench scorer (11,154) in NBA history, passing Dell Curry (11,147)."It means a lot to me," Williams told NBATV. "It's a testament to my career. I've been a career bench player, two-time Sixth Man of the Year and hopefully get another one this year. It just means a lot to me to go into the record books." Forward Danilo Gallinari had 25 points on 9-of-12 shooting for his fourth straight 20-point outing and is averaging 25.5 during the stretch.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The Trail Blazers have notched three straight road wins over the Clippers, including 131-127 on Dec. 17.
2. Los Angeles C Ivica Zubac is 12-of-15 shooting over the past two games, scoring 14 points in each.
3. Portland SG Rodney Hood (hip) and swingman Evan Turner (knee) are questionable for Tuesday's game.