According to ESPN's ace reporter Brian Windvorst, Portland Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard plans to undergo surgery to treat the ongoing pain caused by the abdominal injury, and Woshen also said that Lillard did not rule out the possibility of a comeback this season after the operation, but everything is still unknown.
Lillard will undergo surgery this Friday and will be re-evaluated six to eight weeks later. According to Yahoo Sports reporter Haynes, Lillard recently traveled to St. Louis and Philadelphia to see experts, both of whom believe that surgery is the best option, Haynes also added that Lillard's return to the game this season depends on his health and the team's ranking in the West, the Blazers currently have a record of 16 wins and 24 losses, ranking 10th in the West.
Lillard's MRI results in early December of the previous year revealed a lesion of his lower abdominal tendon and rested for more than 10 days as a result. He later said the injury had plagued him for years and was considering operating on the last offseason, though he eventually opted for the Olympics, helping the U.S. team win a gold medal in August last year, but he didn't look like he was back to 100 percent, with Lillard playing at the Tokyo Olympics aggravating the injury, according to Woshen' report.
Before returning to the game last month, Lillard was given an injection of cortisone to relieve abdominal pain, but everyone knew it was not a cure, only a short-term contingency, and injuries still plagued the Blazers' best player. Just a week ago, the Blazers announced that Lillard would miss three more games due to injury, but finally waited for the news that Lillard had confirmed surgery.
The Trail Blazers have a record of just 4-7 without Lillard this season, and the six-time All-Star has played 29 games this season (averaging 36.4 minutes per game) and can finish with 24 points, 4.1 rebounds and 7.3 assists, shooting 40.2%/32.4%/87.8% from the field, averaging 24 points per game is his lowest since the 2014-15 season, while shooting and shooting record career lows in both shooting and three-point shooting. It is not difficult to see that injuries have a great negative impact on his performance.
With Lillard sidelined, coupled with the absence of another man in the backcourt, C.J. McCollum, due to a collapsed lung, the Blazers had to reuse 22-year-old Anfenni Simmons this month. Simmons has performed well in five games this month (averaging 37 minutes per game), averaging 27.8 points, 3.2 rebounds and 7.6 assists, shooting 51.1%/44.6%/94.7 percent from the field, and the absence of the two home stars is a huge opportunity for the fourth-year guard to qualify for a rookie-level contract extension this summer.