Damian Lillard Articles - Page 39

PORTLAND — The Portland Trail Blazers used an 18-5 run over the game’s final four minutes and 48 seconds for a rousing and much-needed 110-106 victory over the Indiana Pacers on Friday night. The crunch-time identity that’s been the Blazers’ hallmark for the better part of a decade, though, was almost completely absent for the […]

Crunch-time went much different for Damian Lillard against the Cleveland Cavaliers than the basketball world has come to expect since he entered the league nearly a decade ago. The Portland Trail Blazers superstar had several golden opportunities to complete his team’s arduous comeback on Wednesday, including a game-tying look from three as the fourth-quarter buzzer […]

Chauncey Billups wasn’t most frustrated by the Cleveland Cavaliers canning 15 threes en route to 50 percent shooting from beyond the arc. Jarrett Allen’s “monster” 24-point night didn’t draw much ire from the rookie head coach, either. What really left Billups displeased after the Portland Trail Blazers’ loss to the short-handed Cavaliers on Wednesday was […]

The Portland Trail Blazers are heading home to Rip City winless following Wednesday’s disappointing 107-104 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers, finishing a quick Eastern Conference road trip 0-3. Here are three key takeaways from another frustrating Blazers defeat. The Wrong Kind of Dame Time Lillard’s fingerprints were all over crunch-time…just not in the way Rip […]

Portland Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard previously admitted that the Milwaukee Bucks’ 2020-21 NBA championship gave him hope that a small market team can win it all. It’s one of the reasons why he decided to stay in Rip City despite being constantly linked to a trade to contenders. Apparently, however, Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo […]

When Damian Lillard was weighing his options following the Portland Trail Blazers playoff elimination last June, LeBron James invited him to a meeting on his rooftop in Brentwood. LeBron’s Los Angeles Lakers teammate, Anthony Davis, was also present. This is one of the many fascinating nuggets in Yahoo’s Chris Haynes’ inside report on Lillard’s offseason […]

If it was up to Damian Lillard, Draymond Green would be a member of the Portland Trail Blazers, not the Golden State Warriors. According to The Athletic’s Anthony Slater, Lillard has been “obsessed” with finding a way for the Blazers to swing a trade for Green. “The Blazers would love to have him,” Slater said, […]

The most shocking slump of Damian Lillard’s career continued on Monday, the Portland Trail Blazers franchise player needing 20 shots to score as many points while going 2-of-9 from three in a dispiriting loss to the short-handed Philadelphia 76ers. A seven-game sample size isn’t near big enough to draw any meaningful conclusions, but especially about […]

When the NBA announced it would be ending its partnership with Spalding last year, it took many by surprise. The league’s basketball partner since 1983, Spalding made custom-made basketballs for the NBA for nearly 40 years. Starting this season, the Wilson ball became the NBA’s official ball. Early returns may not be so great, and […]

Damian Lillard had another poor shooting night on Monday as the Portland Blazers fell to the Philadelphia 76ers, 113-103. Dame has been struggling mightily to start the season as the Blazers now fall to 3-4. In his mind, however, Dame is more than willing to embrace the difficulties he’s currently going through. According to the […]

While Philadelphia 76ers fans were showering Damian Lillard with “We want Lillard” chants during Monday’s game, the cameras of the game’s broadcast focused on Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups who looked like he was smirking at what the Sixers faithful are doing. "We want Lillard" chants in Philly 👀 pic.twitter.com/23ZQujuGaJ — Bleacher Report […]

Winning on the second night of a road back-to-back is tough in the NBA, especially for teams based on the West coast facing Eastern Conference foes. Don’t expect the Portland Trail Blazers to take any solace from that reality considering the quality of Monday’s competition, though. The Philadelphia 76ers beat the Blazers 113-103 at Wells […]

Fans of Philadelphia 76ers serenaded Damian Lillard on Monday night as the Portland Trail Blazers came to town. Early in the game, the Sixers home crowd began chanting “We want Lillard” as the Blazers star headed to the free-throw line to shoot a pair. Dame did not pay any attention to the cheers, but as […]

Damian Lillard and the Portland Trail Blazers were in Philadelphia on Monday to face off against the Sixers. As it turns out, this game presented itself as an opportunity for Philly fans to blatantly try and recruit Dame to their team amid trade rumors. Despite the fact that Ben Simmons’ relationship with the Sixers appears […]

Spooky SZN is always an interesting time for NBA fans. Why, you ask? Because once Halloween hits, the players channel their inner children and dress up in costumes! Of course, since these are multi-millionaire NBA players we’re talking about, they go absolutely nuts with their fits, rivalling those of professional cosplayers at times. With that […]

The Portland Trail Blazers squandered a seven-point halftime lead on Sunday, falling to the Charlotte Hornets 125-113 on the first leg of a tough Eastern Conference back-to-back. Here are three takeaways from the Blazers’ Halloween loss to Charlotte, one highlighted by another sinister shooting night from Damian Lillard. Porous Second-Half Defense Portland got control of […]

Almost two weeks into the regular season, the Portland Trail Blazers have been arguably the most volatile team in the NBA. At 3-2 following a pair of impressive double-digit victories over Western Conference playoff hopefuls, though, there’s plenty of reason for optimism in Rip City. Here are three overreactions for Portland based on its first […]

Following a couple of poor outings, Portland Trail Blazers superstar Damian Lillard bounced back on Friday night in a big win over the Los Angeles Clippers. Dame dropped 25 points and dished out six assists while draining 5 of 7 attempts from downtown. Lillard had the perfect reaction to his performance post-game. Via Sean Highkin: […]

The Portland Trail Blazers put forth another stellar team-wide effort on Friday night at Moda Center, defeating the LA Clippers 111-92 despite Paul George going off for a typically smooth 42 points. Not bad for a Portland team that fell to the Clippers by 30 points earlier this week in a performance that Chauncey Billups […]

Portland Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard has been linked to several trade rumors this past 2021 offseason. At one point, it even looked like he’s done with the team and was instead aiming to join a franchise like the Los Angeles Lakers where he has the best chance to win a title. Obviously, he stayed […]

Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups has a message to the NBA: enjoy Damian Lillard’s struggles while he’s on it. … Well, sort of. Lillard has been on a rut since the start of the 2021-22 season, averaging just 17.8 points on 33.3 percent shooting from the field–including a horrendous 17.1 percent from deep. […]

James Harden of the Brooklyn Nets has been the “poster boy” for players affected by the NBA’s new foul rule chance, but he’s far from the only superstar affected by them. Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young was vocal on the new rules after his team’s Thursday night loss to the Washington Wizards. Young mustered just […]

The Los Angeles Clippers and Portland Trail Blazers have had heated encounters over the past few seasons. It has been an entertaining sight to see these two franchises face off with each other, but the Clippers started their first matchup this season with a 30-point victory last Monday night. That win of the Clippers is […]

Damian Lillard has been on a shooting slump through the first four games of the 2020-21 season. The six-time All-Star, known for erupting for huge scoring nights, has not even scored over 20 points yet. His frigid shooting numbers— only 24 made field goals in 72 total attempts — haven’t at all doomed the Portland […]

The Memphis Grizzlies put up 57 points in the first half of Wednesday’s game, slicing and dicing the Portland Trail Blazers’ half-court defense en route to a stellar 116.3 offensive rating. More discouraging for Portland going into intermission? Ja Morant was underwhelming compared to the sky-high standard he set over the season’s first three games, […]

Spurred by an utterly dominant second-half performance on both sides of the ball, the Portland Trail Blazers routed the Memphis Grizzlies 116-96 on Wednesday night at Moda Center. Here are four positives from the Blazers’ impressive victory, which moves them to 2-2 for the 2021-22 season. The Entire Second Half Portland trailed 57-51 at halftime, […]

During the third-quarter nadir of the Portland Trail Blazers’ “embarrassing” loss to the LA Clippers, there were a few fleeting moments that made it easy to wonder if everything was alright with Damian Lillard. He’d just airmailed another three-pointer, threw a pocket pass to Jusuf Nurkic’s heel and came up short on a half-contested layup. […]

LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Clippers blew out the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday night, 116-86. The final score somehow didn’t even truly indicate just how dominant Tyronn Lue’s club was in what was their seventh consecutive win over Damian Lillard’s Blazers. Portland turned the ball over 30 times on the night. They also shot […]

Forty-eight hours after reaching their peak, the Portland Trail Blazers hit rock bottom. Chauncey Billups’ new team was embarrassed by his old one on Monday night at Staples Center, falling 116-86 to the LA Clippers. Here are three takeaways from the Blazers’ 30-point drubbing, one every bit as ugly as the final score indicates—if not […]

The Portland Trail Blazers will take on a winless LA Clippers squad at Staples Center on Monday night, but don’t blame Paul George. Picking up right where he left off from last year’s playoffs, George has thrived as the Clippers’ alpha dog without Kawhi Leonard over the first two games of the regular season, averaging […]

PORTLAND — The Portland Trail Blazers got both their first win of the regular season and the Chauncey Billups era in rousing fashion on Saturday night, blowing out the Phoenix Suns 134-105 at Moda Center. Here are four takeaways from Portland’s dominant victory over the reigning Western Conference champions, a game every bit as lopsided as […]

Portland Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard understands the sentiments of those questioning why he’s in the Top 75 list over the likes of Dwight Howard, Tracy McGrady, Vince Carter and other NBA legends. However, he wants his detractors to know one thing: he wasn’t the one who made the list! According to Dame, while he […]

Damian Lillard is the greatest player in Portland Trail Blazers history. He’s made six All-NBA teams, played in six All-Star Games, won Rookie of the Year and earned a gold medal with Team USA at the Beijing Olympics. The unique space Lillard occupies in NBA culture might be as impressive as any of those accomplishments. […]

A popular internal talking point from the Portland Trail Blazers before the regular season was the success of their incumbent starting lineup. Whether a subliminal message to Damian Lillard as he pondered leaving Rip City or just more general justification for bringing the band back together, Neil Olshey, Chauncey Billups and even some players championed […]

As the fourth quarter clocked ticked toward zeroes, with the Portland Trail Blazers down just three points following a spirited late-game comeback, Damian Lillard dribbled the ball up the floor, crossed over between his legs and stepped back for a 30-footer. But one of his worst shooting nights ended the way it had transpired from […]

PORTLAND, Ore. —The clock ran out on the Portland Trail Blazers’ spirited fourth-quarter comeback against the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday night, with Damian Lillard’s would-be game-tying triple as time expired landing just off the mark. The Blazers fell to the Kings 124-121, a final score that’s hardly an indication of just how much Chauncey Billups’ […]

The entire basketball world had their eyes on Tuesday’s opening night matchup between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Golden State Warriors. Even Portland Trail Blazers superstar Damian Lillard was glued to his TV for the game, and he was one of those who took notice of LeBron James’ season debut performance. Dame had just […]

Damian Lillard wants to win a championship with the Portland Trail Blazers. He loves playing with longtime teammates like C.J. McCollum and Jusuf Nurkic, and has found a home living in Rip City. None of those factors, however, were ultimately what caused Lillard to back off a potential trade request over the summer that at […]

Rip City’s wait is over. In wake of the most dramatic, controversial offseason in team history, the Portland Trail Blazers finally open the 2021-22 regular season on Wednesday night against the Sacramento Kings at Moda Center. Here are three keys to watch for as Damian Lillard, C.J. McCollum and company look to tip off the […]