Damian Lillard's latest unreal scoring night came in a Portland Trail Blazers win over the Los Angeles Lakers. With 40 points, eight triples, six rebounds and five assists, Lillard played a leading role in Portland's win and showed once again that few players can put the ball through the net like he does.
Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups used the word “spoiled” to illustrate just how common it is to see Lillard going off for huge scoring nights.
"We've gotten spoiled here."
Coach Billups talks Dame after another 40-PT performance in the @trailblazers' win! pic.twitter.com/2oyOnwXAIt
— NBA (@NBA) February 14, 2023
“We've gotten spoiled here, being able to see this guy night in and night out, just dominate and score 30 in a half or 60 in a game,” Billups said. “It's been incredible. He's been so dang good. It's crazy.”
Even though it is partially also a function of an extremely high-scoring NBA, a 40-point game is still noteworthy. Lillard has scored 40 points on 51 occasions, more than any other active player besides James Harden, LeBron James, Kevin Durant and Stephen Curry. Just this season, he has done it 11 times. With per-game averages of 31.0 points, 7.3 assists and 4.1 rebounds, Lillard will represent the Blazers in the All-Star game for the seventh time in his career. He will also be participating in the 3-point contest.
The Blazers' win over the Lakers featured Matisse Thybulle's Portland debut and Cam Reddish's second game with the team. Thybulle finished with 14 points on 5-9 shooting, six rebounds, three blocks and two assists. He will look to complement Damian Lillard's scintillating scoring with his disruptive defense and get Portland into the playoffs.
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