Portland Trail Blazers superstar Damian Lillard certainly elevated his game to a whole new level inside the bubble at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida. Dame Time was up and running, especially in the seeding games as the 30-year-old lights-out scorer practically willed his team to the eighth seed in the stacked Western Conference.
Chatting with hip-hop icon Fat Joe in an Instagram Live on Wednesday, Lillard opened up about how the restrictive conditions inside the bubble brought out the best in him, especially during his magnificent showing in the play-in tourney.
“To me personally, the bubble was way easier. There was really no distractions. We didn't have to travel after games. We were leaving arenas like 10 or 11 o'clock after the games and we would go right back to the hotel,” the Blazers star shared. “We would get our recovery right after the game, we would have food laid out for us when we go to our room to lay down. Everything was laid out. We weren't on a plane after, rush to the hotel, check into our rooms. It was just get up the next morning and practice all in one spot. Our bodies were recovering faster. We were more rested. It was way easier for me. That's why you saw a lot of people just killing it like that.”
Dame says NBA games were "way easier" in the bubble.
(via @Dame_Lillard, @fatjoe) pic.twitter.com/3aDxPvLKtl
— ESPN (@espn) December 2, 2020
While some players battled with homesickness throughout their stay in the bubble, Damian Lillard actually relished the opportunity to play pure, unadulterated basketball during those times. The Blazers star was virtually unstoppable in Portland’s eight seeding games, notching 37.6 points on ridiculous shooting numbers of 49.7 percent from the field, 43.6 from the 3-point line, and 88.8 from the charity stripe.
Moreover, Dame recorded 4.3 rebounds, 9.6 assists and 1.4 steals in 41.7 minutes. Rip City went 6-2 during that stretch and earned a spot in the first-ever play-in tournament. The Blazers eventually bested the Memphis Grizzlies for the 8th and final spot, as Lillard put up 154 points in the final three seeding games alone. He deservingly won the NBA’s Bubble MVP with a unanimous vote, receiving 22 first-place votes from sports journalists.
Lillard, meanwhile, was not the only one who balled out inside the bubble, as guys like Devin Booker and TJ Warren also benefited greatly from playing in the enclosed environment.
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