The Portland Trail Blazers were embarrassed by the Denver Nuggets in Game 5, but even before the final whistle blew, Damian Lillard got up from his seat on the bench, looking at the eyes of every one of his teammates to deliver a message:

“We just need to get back here,” Lillard said he repeated to each player, noting the Blazers would need to win Game 6 at home to force a Game 7 back at the Pepsi Center, according to Jason Quick of The Athletic.

The message resonated with his teammates, as the series will have to go through Denver to be won. Lillard's refusal to lay down in this moment speaks to the Blazers' perseverance, the same they had when first losing center Jusuf Nurkic for the season:

“I thought it was a great message from our leader,” said forward Maurice Harkless. “He’s right. The series is not over. It’s far from over.”

The Blazers have made a habit of fighting, and even if they eliminated the Oklahoma City Thunder with a gentlemen's sweep, Lillard isn't afraid of clawing his way to a win:

“Any time you have something special, it’s not special because it was easy,” said Lillard. “It’s not special because you were never in a tough position. That’s where we are now: facing elimination, and that’s what makes this special.”

“That’s what our season has been about,” Lillard added before shrugging his shoulder. “Here we are again.”

The Blazers have overcome instances of hardship like the loss of late owner Paul Allen, as well as a recent accident involving video coordinator Jonathan Yim, whom the coaches honored with bow ties during Game 2.

Just like their entire season, the Blazers will have to fight yet again and hope to muster an excuse to return to Denver for a do-or-die Game 7.