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The Portland Trail Blazers will head over to the Capital One Arena on Tuesday to take on the Washington Wizards in their first meeting of the 2020-21 NBA season.
The Portland Trail Blazers enter this contest with a 10-9 NBA record that has them tied for the eighth position in the Western Conference. They fell to the Milwaukee Bucks 134-106 in their previous matchup. Damian Lillard and company could not get the ball to drop as they struggled throughout the game, with a weak 37.5% field goal average as a team.
Damian Lillard, Carmelo Anthony and Gary Trent Jr. combined for only 31 points on the night. The only positive was forward Nassir Little, who came out strong with a team-high 30-point performance.
The Portland Trail Blazers have hit a rough patch with player injuries and are clearly missing the presence of Jusuf Nurkic and CJ McCollum on the floor.
Meanwhile, the Washington Wizards' woes this season have been well-documented, but they do have one amazing stat amidst all the drama.
The Wizards have earned two of their four wins by defeating the star-studded Brooklyn Nets team. Russell Westbrook and Bradley Beal rose to the occasion in their last outing against the Nets and did not give up till the final play of the game.
Beal ended his game night with 37 points while Westbrook had a game-high 41 points to go with ten boards and eight assists.
Portland Trail Blazers vs Washington Wizards Injury Updates
Portland Trail Blazers
The Portland Trail Blazers will continue to be without two of their top contributors. Jusuf Nurkic and CJ McCollum have been out with injuries and will be reevaluated after a few weeks. There is no clarity on when they might return to their floor duties.
In addition, Derrick Jones Jr., who sat out the Trail Blazers' previous matchup with the Bucks, remains questionable for their next game. His participation will be a game-time decision from the coaching staff.
Washington Wizards
The Washington Wizards' Raul Neto has been ruled out for Tuesday night's game as he suffered a groin injury. The Wizards also suffered a huge loss when they lost their big man Thomas Bryant to a season-ending injury earlier.
The team has since expanded Robin Lopez's role as the primary center. Lopez is averaging 7.4 points and 4.2 assists in sixteen games thus far.
Portland Trail Blazers vs Washington Wizards Predicted Line-ups
Portland Trail Blazers
The short-handed Portland Trail Blazers will roll out the same team from their previous outing. Damian Lillard and Gary Trent Jr. will take care of business in the backcourt while Robert Covington and Rodney Hood will feature on the wing as the two forwards.
Both players had a slow night in their previous outing and will be eager to get back in the groove of things in their matchup with the Wizards. Enes Kanter will face off with Robin Lopez in the paint area as Portland's primary center.
Washington Wizards
The contest between the Portland Trail Blazers and the Washington Wizards could go down to the wire as both teams match up evenly.
The Wizards are coming off a brilliant showing against the Nets' super team and will be hungry to keep the momentum going against the Trail Blazers.
The Washington Wizards' backcourt will feature their star duo, Russell Westbrook and Bradley Beal. Deni Avdija and Rui Hachimura will resume their roles as the two forwards while Robin Lopez will play the anchor position as the starting center.
Scott Brooks will be hoping that his team can continue their excellent performance against the Nets in this matchup and add a few wins to their losing season record.
Portland Trail Blazers vs Washington Wizards Starting 5s
Portland Trail Blazers
G Damian Lillard, G Gary Trent Jr, F Robert Covington, F Rodney Hood, C Enes Kanter
Washington Wizards
G Russell Westbrook, G Bradley Beal, F Deni Avdija, F Rui Hachimura, C Robin Lopez.
Guess the Lakers players!
