Damian Lillard came to Orlando as a man on a mission. The Portland Trail Blazers superstar has almost single-handedly carried his team in their quest to secure the last spot in the Western Conference playoffs.
The five-time All-Star has never really needed extra motivation to perform at the highest-level, but with his cousin Brandon Johnson passing away last May, Lillard got an extra little push to make his family proud.
“Losing him, it hurt. He was my first cousin that was that close to me that passed away,” the Blazers star opened up on Sunday after their crucial win over the Mavs, per Ben Gollver of the Wahington Post. “So it was tough. I just try to continue what I feel like he would want me to do. Just trying to continue on the path that I know he was proud of.”
Blazers’ Damian Lillard details the passing of his cousin during the quarantine in Portland: “They put him in a peaceful place. We prayed over his body and said our goodbyes. CJ [McCollum] came.” pic.twitter.com/q0H68blSpk
— Ben Golliver (@BenGolliver) August 12, 2020
Brandon Johnson, fondly known as Chef B, was a self-taught chef who moved to Portland in 2017 to join his brother Kenny's personal chef business. Kenny Johnson started as Lillard's personal chef in 2014, and he came in to help his brother's business expand and move forward.
Brandon had helped build nutritious and tasty meals for Lillard, who has been vegan since 2017. Chef B had also been the personal chef of other Blazers stars like CJ McCollum and Jusuf Nurkic.
Johnson's sudden death happened during the quarantine in Portland, and Damian Lillard took the opportunity on Tuesday to open up about the passing of a very important figure in his life.
“I was able to get there and say my goodbyes,” the Blazers guard added while reminiscing the tragic day in May when Brandon passed. “We prayed over his body and said our goodbyes. CJ [McCollum] came. Me and CJ, we cried together. That's also part of our brotherhood.”
Rest in power, Chef B.
Follow Us
Subscribe