Trail Blazers F Deni Avdija (back) expected to play Friday

Portland Trail Blazers standout forward Deni Avdija is expected to be available for Friday’s game with the Toronto Raptors after leaving Thursday’s 127-110 win over the visiting Miami Heat with back soreness.

“I think he’ll be fine,” Trail Blazers coach Tiago Splitter told reporters after the game, adding that he expects him to play the second game of the back-to-back.

“Tiago does a great job making decisions to protect me,” Avdija told reporters. “There’s a lot of season left. We don’t want to do anything that will affect the season in the long run.”

Avdija exited early in the third quarter and didn’t return, finishing with 20 points, seven rebounds and four assists in 18 minutes. He left the contest less than two minutes into the second half, and the team officially ruled him out later in the third quarter.

The 6-foot-8 Avdija recently missed three consecutive games due to lower-back soreness. He played in each of the team’s first 40 games before the injury. Thursday’s game was his second game back in uniform.

Avdija entered the contest as the Trail Blazers’ leader in scoring at 26.2 points per game. He ranked second in rebounding (7.1) and assists (6.9).

–Field Level Media