As the Trail Blazers prepare for the next round of the playoffs, the team may be without center Enes Kanter, who suffered a separated shoulder in Game 5 against the Thunder.
Kanter played through the injury, notching 13 points and 13 rebounds in the win. However, it’s uncertain whether the injury will heal to the point of the Turkish center being able to play through it, per The Associated Press.
“I think the Blazers are doing a very good job taking care of it. But, I mean obviously, I’m not going to lie, it hurts pretty bad,” Kanter said. “I mean I’m having a hard time changing my shirt or eating food. So it’s a process. We’re just taking it day by day, see how it feels.”
In five games against Oklahoma City, Kanter averaged 13.2 PPG and 10.2 RPG for Portland. It has been a season revival of sorts for Kanter, who was waived by the Knicks in February after a tumultuous run in New York.
Portland awaits the winner of the Spurs vs. Nuggets series in the next round. Trail Blazers head coach Terry Stotts hopes an extended break for Kanter — given Portland being the first team to advance — helps him recover for the next round.
“I know it’s too early,” Stotts said. “The good thing is we don’t play until Monday, so we don’t really have to make any decisions until then. So we’re hopeful.”
Maybe for a couple games, but if they’re losing the series, I think they’re for sure going to bring him back in games 3 or 4. Like when they brought back Nurk even though he wasn’t fully healthy as a last ditch effort to try to beat the Warriors 2 seasons ago.