Clippers vs. Blazers: Eric Gordon ready to play in Portland

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Just call Clippers guard Eric Gordon the King of Pain.

He tore a ligament in the ring finger of his right hand against Minnesota on Wednesday night but returned for the second half against the Timberwolves and managed to finish with 23 points.

‘It’s really sore right now,’ Gordon said on Thursday. ‘It hurts as much now as when I first hurt it.’

That doesn’t mean he considered skipping tonight’s game here at Portland.

Not for a minute.

Gordon, who is averaging a team-high 23.8 points, was his usual stoic self and said he would play through it. Playing through it might mean anywhere from eight to 10 weeks before the injury heals, factoring in the possibility of re-aggravating it, said Clipper trainer Jasen Powell.

Although there have been comparisons made to Kobe Bryant’s injury, Powell said the two injuries were not the same. ‘Kobe’s was an avulsion fracture, where the tendon took off a part of the bone,’ he said.

--Lisa Dillman, reporting from Portland, Ore.