TUALATIN — After practice last Saturday, Damian Lillard said his body feels as good at this stage of the year as it has in any of his five NBA seasons.
“I feel good. I think usually by this point I’ll have something … like I’ll have hit the floor a lot more than I’d like to so I’ll be aching all over the place,” the Trail Blazers point guard said. “But I feel good this year. I feel strong.”
However, upon further reflection, Lillard added that his left ankle may take a few more months to fully heal from the sprain he suffered on Dec. 23.
“When I did that I knew, even when I recovered from it, I knew it would be tough on me,” he said. “That’s one thing that I know it’s probably going to take until the summer for … me to be completely explosive and how it was because I never turned it like that.”
Lillard missed five games after spraining his ankle late in a game against the San Antonio Spurs. Since returning to the lineup on Jan. 5, Lillard’s field goal percentage and three-point percentage have taken a dip.
Prior to the ankle injury, Lillard was averaging 27.0 points per game on 45.4 percent shooting and 35.3 percent shooting from beyond the arc. Since Jan. 5, Lillard is averaging 24.4 points per game while shooting 40.9 percent from the floor and 33.6 percent from the three-point line.
Lillard shot 65.8 percent in the restricted area (the lane beneath the charge circle) before spraining his ankle and is shooting just 54.1 percent in the restricted area since. Whether it’s coincidental or a sign of Lillard’s lack of “explosion,” he simply hasn’t been as sharp since returning from the injury, which he admits will likely bother him until he gets off his feet for an extended period in the offseason.
Layman and Quarterman return
Blazers rookies Jake Layman and Tim Quarterman returned to the team on Sunday after spending two weeks on assignment with the Windy City Bulls in the NBA Development League.
Layman averaged 17.9 points, 6.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 33.3 minutes in eight games. He shot 42.4 percent from the floor and 22.6 (12-for-53) percent from beyond the three-point line, while seeing time at both forward spots.
“For me, I was thinking, ‘Go down there and get better,'” Layman said after Blazers practice on Tuesday. “I worked on things I might not be able to work on here as far ball handling, guarding the ball, stuff like that.”
It was Quarterman’s second stint in the D-League this season after playing three games with Windy City in January. He finished with averages of 9.8 points, 6.3 rebounds and 7.2 assists while shooting 32.4 percent from the floor and 13.2 percent from three-point range in nine games.
“I didn’t shoot it very well but that all comes with time and putting in work in the gym and staying at it,” he said. “I think just going down there and just playing it definitely helped me out a lot.”
Aminu doubtful
Al-Farouq Aminu is listed as doubtful for Wednesday’s game against the Utah Jazz with a left knee sprain. Aminu appeared to suffer the injury midway through the fourth quarter on Monday when Atlanta Hawks wing Kent Bazemore rolled into his left leg.
Aminu played the rest of the fourth quarter and overtime, but now may miss Portland’s final game before the All-Star break.
— Mike Richman
mrichman@oregonian.com
@mikegrich
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