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Joel Embiid, Damian Lillard miss scrimmages Sunday with minor injuries

Damian Lillard missed the Portland Trail Blazers’ scrimmage on Sunday night while dealing with inflammation in his left foot, their second-to-last scrimmage before play officially resumes on Thursday.

The injury, head coach Terry Stotts said, isn’t expected to carry over into the season.

“He did have an X-ray,” Stotts said, via ESPN. “The X-ray was negative. He does have some inflammation. I don’t expect it to be a long-term thing.

“Hopefully, he will be able to play in our last scrimmage game. But I think it’s a little bit on the bottom of his foot. I’m not quite sure about that, but I think it is.”

Lillard was averaging a career-high 28.9 points and 7.8 assists per game this season when play was suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He missed several games just before the hiatus with a groin injury, too. The 30-year-old played 20 minutes in their scrimmage on Thursday.

Hassan Whiteside did return to the lineup for Portland on Sunday after missing their last scrimmage with Achilles soreness. He will be on a 20-minute restriction per game, according to ESPN.

The Trail Blazers will enter the season with a 29-37 record, the ninth-best in the Western Conference. They’ll scrimmage against the Oklahoma City Thunder before their first game on Friday.

Damian Lillard dribbles the ball up the court.
Portland star Damian Lillard was out Sunday with inflammation in his left foot, and Philadelphia's Joel Embiid (not pictured) missed time with a calf injury. (Alika Jenner/Getty Images)

Joel Embiid missed scrimmage with calf injury

Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid missed their scrimmage on Sunday with right calf tightness, something he started dealing with after their last scrimmage.

Embiid played just 13 minutes in Friday’s scrimmage against the Memphis Grizzlies, and didn’t play in the second half at all.

Embiid is expected to be evaluated again on Monday, according to ESPN, and is listed as day-to-day. While his status is unclear, 76ers coach Brett Brown said he thinks the team is “just getting out in front of stuff and being smart” with Embiid’s injury.

“It’s the second game. If this had happened three to four games into what we are calling the regular season, [yes, I’d be frustrated],” Brown said, via ESPN. “There is always frustration, selfish frustration, and I know frustration at times for Joel. But initially, just trying to be smart with everything and move on.”

Embiid was averaging 23.4 points and 11.8 rebounds this season when play was suspended, though missed 21 of the team’s 65 games due to various injuries.

The 76ers will enter the restart with a 39-26 record, the sixth-best in the Eastern Conference, and will officially resume play on Saturday afternoon.

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