Portland Trail Blazers: Zach Collins goes down, Caleb Swanigan shines again
The Portland Trail Blazers lost more than just their game against the San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday when Zach Collins was unable to return to the game due to a right quadricep contusion.
The Portland Trail Blazers were defeated by the San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday in Las Vegas, losing 99-85 in their third preliminary game of the 2017 NBA Summer League. The Blazers will head into their first game of the Summer League tournament tomorrow with a preliminary record of 1-2.
Unfortunately, the bad news doesn’t stop there: rookie big man Zach Collins left the contest early in the second quarter, limping to the locker room during the halftime break. Playing just 11 minutes in the game, the team announced that he would not return in the second half due to a right quad contusion.
Collins finished with four points (2-3 FG, 0-1 3P), four rebounds and one steal. He hasn’t made the best first impression with his Summer League performance, averaging just 6.3 points (26.5 percent shooting), 5.7 rebounds, 2.0 steals and 2.0 blocks in 23.5 minutes per game.
Considering the Blazers’ luck with drafting big men, Collins’ leg injury doesn’t exactly inspire hope among the Rip City loyal either.
Blazers also lose Connaughton to injury
Portland G Pat Connaughton (left hamstring strain) and C Zach Collins (right quad contusion) are OUT. #NBASummerLeague
— Trail Blazers PR (@TrailBlazersPR) July 11, 2017
Pat Connaughton, who’s fighting for his non-guranteed $1.4 million contract with the Blazers, also went down with an injury in the second quarter. The team announced that he would not return due to a strained left hamstring.
Over the course of the past three Summer League games, Connaughton has averaged 6.0 points (36.4 percent shooting), 4.3 assists, 2.0 rebounds and 1.0 steals in 24.4 minutes per game. Against the Spurs on Tuesday, he posted seven points, two rebounds and one steal in 11 minutes, shooting 3-for-6 from the field and 1-for-3 from behind the arc.
This game was looking to be the best he’s played all summer and could have very well possibly helped in developing a solid rhythm going into the Summer League tournament. Having been unable to produce consistently prior to this hamstring strain, it wouldn’t be at all surprising to see Connaughton in a baseball uniform come next spring.
Biggie continues to do big things for the Blazers
Injury bug got us.
— Portland Trail Blazers (@trailblazers) July 11, 2017
... But Biggie did a lot of Biggie things. pic.twitter.com/mHv0s3CBxN
The Blazers Summer League squad hasn’t looked all the great early on, but it’s blatantly clear that Neil Olshey has found an absolute gem in Caleb Swanigan.
Swanigan had 19 points (8-14 FG, 1-3 3P, 2-2 FT), 13 rebounds, one assist, two steals and one block in 32 minutes against the Spurs on Tuesday. He’s averaged 15.7 points (42.1 FG%), 11.0 rebounds, 1.0 assists and 1.3 steals in 30.4 minutes in the past three Summer League games.
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Though it may just be Summer League, Swanigan has been incredibly impressive this offseason and appears to be more NBA-ready than his rookie counterpart. How that plays into head coach Terry Stotts’ rotation remains to be seen.