DENVER — As the Portland Trail Blazers shift gears from the Denver Nuggets to the Western Conference Finals and a date with the Golden State Warriors, a 6-foot-8-sized question hovers over the team:

The playing status of Rodney Hood.

The Blazers’ backup wing, who was so valuable in their victory over the Nuggets in the conference semifinals, suffered a left knee injury in the third quarter of Game 7 and his status moving forward is unclear.

After the Blazers defeated the Nuggets 100-96 to advance to the seventh conference finals in franchise history, Hood sported a mix of relief and caution. On the one hand, initial medical evaluations revealed that he had suffered a hyperextended left knee and no structural or significant damage.

“They checked my knee and everything is stable,” Hood said. “Major relief.”

But on the other hand, Hood wasn’t immediately sure if he’d be able to play Tuesday night, when the Blazers and Warriors open a best-of-seven series at Oracle Arena.

“Day-by-day,” he said of his status. “Hopefully the pain goes down tonight and (Monday). Hopefully, it’s feeling better by Tuesday. I’m going to try to shoot for Tuesday, if possible.”

That playing in Game 1 is even a remote possibility is remarkable considering how bad the injury looked live. Hood hyperextended his knee during a collision with Nuggets guard Torrey Craig near midcourt as he was guarding Jamal Murray. Hood was back-peddling while Murray brought the ball up the court to initiate the Nuggets’ offense, and when the two reached the logo, Craig approached from behind to set a screen.

Hood didn’t see it coming and slammed into Craig. He stumbled a couple steps, then collapsed to the Pepsi Center court, clutching his knee and writhing in pain.

After a brief evaluation by team trainers, during which most of the Blazers huddled around Hood, teammates and trainers helped him up and into the locker room. He did not return.

“I did some stuff, tried to get ready, but I couldn’t back-peddle and I couldn’t move like I wanted to,” Hood said. “So I was going to be more of a liability. I should be fine. I don’t have a timetable or anything like that. But I should be fine.”

It was a disheartening ending to a difference-making series for Hood, who, after being acquired in a trade with the Cleveland Cavaliers in February, emerged as important figure in the Western Conference semifinals. He averaged 14.7 points and 3.1 rebounds, while shooting 58 percent from the field, and had memorable moments during critical points of the series.

In the Blazers’ thrilling quadruple-overtime victory in Game 3, Hood scored seven consecutive points, including the eventual game-winning three-pointer, in the final period. And in a do-or-die Game 6, Hood scored a playoff-career-high 25 points on 8-of-12 shooting, prompting Denver coach Mike Malone to call him “the MVP of the game.”

And now, as the Blazers play in the Western Conference Finals for the first time in 19 years, an important question remains: Will this “MVP” be available?

UPDATE: Hood underwent magnetic resonance imaging testing Monday, according to the team, and the results revealed a left knee bone bruise. He’s officially listed as questionable for Game 1.

— Joe Freeman | jfreeman@oregonian.com | 503-294-5183 | @BlazerFreeman | Visit subscription.oregonlive.com/newsletters to get Oregonian/OregonLive journalism delivered to your email inbox