Blazers’ McCollum has fracture in foot Kyrie Irving rejoins Nets, says he ‘just needed a pause’

PORTLAND, ORE. » In the midst of one of his best seasons, Trail Blazers guard CJ McCollum has suffered a hairline fracture in his left foot.

McCollum will wear a walking boot and be evaluated in four weeks.

McCollum was averaging a career-best 26.7 points, as well as five assists, per game when he was injured Saturday during a game against the Atlanta Hawks.

“I don’t want people to feel bad. There’s a lot of people going through a lot worse situations than me,” he said Tuesday. “So I’ll be OK. I’ve been though injuries before, some foot injuries that were more severe that required surgery, some that required not walking for months at a time. So I’ll be able to deal with this accordingly.”

McCollum’s injury is the latest to befall the Blazers. Center Jusuf Nurkic fractured his wrist last week and is out indefinitely. The Blazers announced Tuesday he had surgery and will be evaluated in six weeks.

In his eighth NBA season, McCollum was first thought to have a sprain but the team said additional imaging showed a hairline fracture to the lateral cuneiform.

NEW YORK » Kyrie Irving rested his chin on his arms folded in front of him, looking worn down by his fight to balance his commitment to his team and his community.

He wants to help the Nets. He also wants to support the underserved. “If you don’t create that distinction, then it’s easy to feel the weight of the world while you’re going out there and playing,” Irving said.

Such a weight, the Brooklyn star said, that he “just needed a pause.”

Irving returned to practice with the team and could play Wednesday in Cleveland. He has missed the last seven games — five while away during a leave of absence and two more while regaining his conditioning after he was eligible to return.