Portland Trail Blazers All-Star Damian Lillard will fly home Tuesday night to witness the birth of his first child and will miss Wednesday's game in Memphis, he said after Portland's 107-103 victory in New Orleans.
Lillard scored 41 points to help move the Blazers closer to securing the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference standings. They are 2½ games ahead of Oklahoma City and own the tiebreaker.
Lillard, 27, is averaging 26.6 points, 4.4 rebounds and 6.5 assists this season.
The Blazers will be short another body Wednesday, with the team announcing forward Maurice Harkless will undergo left knee arthroscopic surgery.
A timetable for Harkless' return will be announced after the procedure, the Blazers said.
Shabazz Napier will start at point guard Wednesday night and there's "a chance" Wade Baldwin sees action, coach Terry Stotts said.
