The Portland Trail Blazers’ dwindling postseason hopes took another blow when Anfernee Simons was ruled out for Wednesday’s game at the Utah Jazz.
Simons, out with foot pain, will join Jerami Grant (square bruise) on the bench.
If it seems like the Blazers have rarely had Damian Lillard, Jusuf Nurkic, Simons and Grant all alive and well since Jan. 1, that’s because they haven’t. And that was part of the team problem of this team.
The Blazers, when that group played alongside Josh Hart, went 18-15 that season. The aforementioned quartet rarely saw court together in the past three months.
If the Blazers are to make one last-ditch effort to reach the postseason, they need to win in Utah. The 13th-ranked Blazers are four games behind the 10th-ranked Jazz. A win would make it three, with three very winnable games coming in at home against Chicago, seventh-ranked Oklahoma City (36-36) and 12th-ranked New Orleans (35-37) are pending.
Win at least three of those four and the Blazers would have a pulse for at least two weeks into the season.
But for the Blazers to win two of their next four, let alone three out of four, seems highly unlikely as the Blazers’ key players cannot stay healthy.
PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS AT THE UTAH JAZZ
What: Trail Blazers (31-40) at Jazz (35-36), Wednesday 6 p.m.
Where: Vivint Arena, Salt Lake City.
Radio: Rip City Radio (KPOJ 620 AM).
TV channel: Root Sports Plus (in Portland: Comcast 1253; Comcast: 687-1).
Watch the game live online: You can watch this game live for FREE with fuboTV (free trial). You can also get this game in DirecTV Stream’s “CHOICE” package (promotional offers) if you are out of fuboTV trials or just prefer this platform and its pricing plans. If you already have a cable or satellite provider showing Root Sports and want to watch online, you can watch this game live on Root Sports Live.
OPPORTUNITIES (Oregon Lottery/DraftKings)
money line: POR +140 | UTA-165
spread: POR +4 | About Below:
INJURIES
Blazer: Nassir Little (concussion) is questionable. Fernee Simons (soreness in right foot), Jerami Grant (left quadriceps), Justify Winslow (left ankle sprain) and Ibou Badji (left knee pain) are out.
Jazz: Lauri Markkanen (back pain) is questionable. Jordan Clarkson (finger sprain) and Collin Kuester (left Achilles tendon sprain) are out.
NEXT UP
The Blazers host the Chicago Bulls at 7 p.m. Friday.
— Aaron Fentress | [email protected] | @AaronJFentress (Twitter), @AaronJFentress (Instagram), @AaronFentress (Facebook). Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts
