Is Deandre Ayton Playing? Full Injury Report For Blazers vs Nuggets

Courtney Tate

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The Portland Trail Blazers are in desperate need of a win as they prepare to face off against the Denver Nuggets on Thursday. The Blazers enter the matchup on a six-consecutive game losing streak and have struggled to find their way after one-quarter of the season.

One player who really impacts the success of their team is center Deandre Ayton. Ayton has missed the team’s previous two matchups due to an illness, not having played since December 8 against the Los Angeles Lakers.

Although Ayton participated in Tuesday’s practice, he was listed on the injury report as questionable. However, things seem to be trending upward for the 26-year-old as he told reporters following practice, “I feel great.”

A return from Ayton could be a great sign for the Blazers, as there’s only been three games this season where their top 3 centers were all on the floor. Ayton even mentioned he’s interested in playing the forward position.

”Man, I’m trying to play the four,” Ayton said following Thursday’s practice. “One of them needs to just check in. Let me guard the four and play the four. I’m trying to run the floor.”

He mentioned his team is finally healthy, which is something that has been a problem for Portland since the start of the season.

“I’m glad they’re healthy,” he said. “And we’re all healthy. Let’s do it now. Start me at the five and sub me in at the four.”

Coach Chauncey Billups used his time at practice putting together solutions for offensive spacing and rotations. The Blazers have been struggling to find a consistent rotation since the blockbuster Damian Lillard trade. Billups told reporters he hasn’t made any final decisions regarding Ayton’s request to play the four.

“We’ll see, we’ll see, we’ll see,” Billups said. “DA would play the point if you ask him. He’s probably eager to play the two, as well.”

He does, however, see value in having lots of size on the floor together.

“I may have to experiment playing a couple of them together at one point in the game,” he said. “I like having them out there. I like having the size.”

More size could definitely benefit Portland as rebounding has been a major issue for the Blazers. The Trail Blazers currently rank 27th in rebounding only averaging 39.2 per game.

“We’ve had a rebounding problem a lot of times this year, so that’s one thing that you’d like to hop would help that out,” said Billups.

As for Ayton, it wasn’t clear exactly what illness he suffered from, but he mentioned the illness included headaches, nose bleeds, fatigue, and chills.

“Now I’m back feeling not contagious and ready to hoop”, Ayton said.

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Courtney Tate
COURTNEY TATE

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