Portland Trail Blazers guard CJ McCollum has been cleared for contact practice as he continues to recover from a left foot fracture, president of basketball operations Neil Olshey announced Thursday.
The Blazers also issued an update on Jusuf Nurkic, saying the center is making progress in his recovery from a right wrist fracture and has continued to increase his on-court activity.
Both players will be re-evaluated next week.
McCollum had gotten off to a blistering start to the season before injuring his foot in a win over the Atlanta Hawks on Jan. 16. In 13 games, McCollum averaged 26.7 points and 5 assists.
Nurkic went down just two days prior, injuring his wrist in a loss to the Indiana Pacers on Jan. 14. He had surgery on the wrist a few days later. The 7-foot Bosnian center was averaging 10.3 points and 7.6 rebounds
Despite their absence. the Blazers have stayed competitive in the Western Conference — thanks in large part to the play of Damian Lillard. Entering Thursday’s games, Portland held the No. 5 seed with a 20-14 record.