Wednesday night’s game between the Portland Trail Blazers and San Antonio Spurs will mark the return of Zach Collins to Rip city.
Collins, who joined the Blazers in a 2017 draft-day trade, was signed by the Spurs last offseason after Portland elected to part ways with the oft-injured center/forward.
Now healthy after a broken foot cost him all of the 2020-21 season and most of this season, Collins is seeking to carve out a new career with the Spurs.
In 18 games with two starts, Collins has averaged 16.3 minutes per game while producing 6.1 points and 4.7 rebounds. He is shooting a career-high 37.9% on threes while taking 1.6 per game.
Collins in three seasons with Portland averaged 5.7 points and four rebounds. The 10th-overall pick in the 2017 draft, Collins showed promise before a shoulder injury early in the 2019-20 season sidelined him.
The injured his foot at the NBA bubble in the summer 2020 and was expected to return by January of 2021. But setback led to two more surgeries to repair his foot.
The 11th-placed Blazers trail 10th-place San Antonio by a half-game in the Western Conference standings.
PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS VS SAN ANTONIO SPURS
What: Trail Blazers (27-44) vs. Spurs (28-44), 7 p.m., Wednesday.
Where: Moda Center.
Radio: Rip City Radio (KPOJ 620 AM).
TV channel: Root Sports (in Portland: Comcast 734/34; DirecTV 687).
Watch the game live online: You can watch this game live for FREE with fuboTV (free trial). You can also get this game on DirecTV Stream’s “CHOICE” package (promotional offers), if you are out of fuboTV trials, or simply prefer that platform and their pricing plans. If you already have a cable or satellite provider that carries Root Sports and want to watch online, you can watch this game live on Root Sports Live.
ODDS
Moneyline: POR +230 | SAS – 302
Spread: SAS -7 | Over/Under: 234
INJURIES
Blazers: Greg Brown III (left ankle; sprain) is probable; Eric Bledsoe (left Achilles; tendinopathy), Josh Hart (left knee; patellar tendinopathy), Joe Ingles (left knee recovery), Damian Lillard (core muscle recovery), Nassir Little (left shoulder recovery), Didi Louzada (left knee recovery), Jusuf Nurkic (left foot; plantar fasciitis) and Anfernee Simons (left knee; patellar tendinopathy) are out for tomorrow’s game against San Antonio. (edited)
Spurs: Keita Bates-Diop (mid back; soreness) is available; Devontae Cacok (G League – on assignment), Romeo Langford (right hamstring; strain), Doug McDermott (right ankle; sprain), DJ Stewart (G League – two-way), Lonnie Walker IV (low back; spasms) and Robert Woodard II (G League – two-way) are out.
NEXT UP
The Blazers’ five-game homestand continues Friday and Saturday against Houston (18-54).
— Aaron Fentress | [email protected] | @AaronJFentress (Twitter), @AaronJFentress (Instagram), @AaronFentress (Facebook).
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