The Portland Trail Blazers have gotten off to a puzzling 4-8 start to the 2019-20 season, but nothing was more head-scratching than seeing Damian Lillard snap a 230-game streak scoring in double figures on Wednesday.
Lillard entered the game averaging 32.5 points over the first 11 games, trailing only James Harden of the Houston Rockets (38.2). But the Toronto Raptors held him to nine points by using similar tactics to the ones they deployed against Stephen Curry during the 2019 NBA Finals.
The Raptors used the archaic box-and-one defense, crowding Lillard and denying him the ball — making use of an old, but true basketball saying: the best way to defend a player is to not let him touch the ball at all.
Lillard had fits finding the ball, and when he did, he was forced to settle for poor shots, resulting in a 2-of-12 shooting night, including 2-of-7 from deep.
Following a 114-106 loss to the Raptors, Lillard admitted it was tough on him, but was confident his team will find a way to turn it all around.
“It’s not a great feeling, but it’s not the end of the world,” said Lillard, according to Kerry Eggers of The Portland Tribune. “Every season has bad stretches and good stretches. We always find a way to turn it around. That’s why I’m able to keep a level head and still be confident that we can find our way.”
Lillard had the third-highest active streak for double-figures scoring, according to ESPN Stats & Info — trailing only LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers (939 games) and James Harden of the Houston Rockets (352), both extending their runs Wednesday.
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