Damian Lillard Articles - Page 33

Gravity of the New Orleans Pelicans advancing past the play-in tournament extends far beyond The Big Easy. Thousands of miles away, reverberations of their stunning rise from 1-12 bottom-feeder to thorny playoff upstart—with the chance to take a 2-1 first-round lead on basketball’s best team—will be felt throughout what was supposed to be a transformative […]

With CJ McCollum no longer a part of the Portland Trail Blazers, Damian Lillard is going to need a new star to help him carry the franchise. Lillard, who has been some sort of a forgotten man this season because he missed a bunch of games due to injury, reportedly shares a mutual interest with […]

C.J. McCollum drained a tough mid-range jumper in crunch time, giving his team a two-possession lead. Robert Covington changed the game when deployed as a full-time small-ball five. Norman Powell came alive after intermission. Larry Nance Jr. forcefully answered the bell with the season on the line, providing a palpable two-way impact off the bench. […]

Portland Trail Blazers are used to hearing all the Damian Lillard trade rumors by now. The man himself has been as transparent as can be about where his head is at all times when it comes to his future. In a recent interview with CNBC’s Jabari Young, the Blazers star affirmed his desire, once again, […]

One of the most disappointing seasons in Portland Trail Blazers history didn’t change much for Damian Lillard. Poised to return in 2022-23 healthier than he’s been in years after going under the knife to address longstanding pain in his midsection, Lillard remains fully committed to the team he threatened to leave on multiple occasions last […]

Damian Lillard and the Portland Trail Blazers are out of the playoffs for the first time in eight years. Lillard’s former co-star, CJ McCollum, is still dancing, though. His New Orleans Pelicans are set to host the second play-in game against the San Antonio Spurs. Watching McCollum thrive with his new team has Lillard feeling […]

Damian Lillard’s pointed demands for an improved supporting cast have still yet to be addressed. It has been almost a year since the most loyal superstar in basketball threatened to leave Rip City, and all the Portland Trail Blazers have to show for it is the mere possibility of finally meeting his mandate. CJ McCollum […]

The Portland Trail Blazers had a rather unforgettable season, but for the wrong reasons. Damian Lillard got injured midway through the campaign, and so the team decided to break the roster up and focus on the future instead. Despite their failed campaign, however, Lillard still sees a bright future for the team. And he expressed […]

The Portland Trail Blazers’ immediate focus once the regular season mercifully comes to a close on Sunday will be the NBA draft. Locked into the league’s sixth-highest lottery odds, Portland is guaranteed a top-10 pick and could net a second lottery selection if the New Orleans Pelicans are ousted from the play-in tournament. But with […]

The Portland Trail Blazers have yet to rediscover their old form as they currently sit at the 13th spot of the Western Conference with a 27-51 record. With the playoffs already out of reach, they are already looking forward to the next season where they will aim to get back into their winning ways. Portland’s […]

Damian Lillard might be recuperating from a surgery, but the Portland Trail Blazers star is certainly having fun off the court. Lillard has been supporting his team from the sidelines, cheering them on and giving them advice. One fan, however, tried to see if he could get Lillard to react to a challenge of his. […]

Damian Lillard is one of the most exciting players to watch in the NBA today. The Portland Trail Blazers point guard can light it up in an incendiary second and hit the game-winner to cap it all of. But the Blazers star is also still a fan of the game himself. On a recent appearance […]

Damian Lillard has been through it all in his career. He’s been through the ups and the downs and he’s stood strong all throughout. Another player that is in the midst of a whirlwind of criticism at this point in his career is none other than Los Angeles Lakers superstar Russell Westbrook. If you were […]

The Portland Trail Blazers are bound to look much different when Damian Lillard returns from the longest absence of his career for the 2022-23 season opener. Unfortunately for the best player in franchise history, though, the re-tooled Blazers also won’t be as talented or experienced as the now-defunct team he left after the New Year, either. So […]

When Damian Lillard returns to the Portland Trail Blazers next season, he’ll be met by a way different team compared to what he started this 2021-22. The Rip City squad started a major overhaul by trading a few key players in order to acquire assets and potentially speed up rebuilding their roster around Dame. Despite […]

The Portland Trail Blazers had lots of pressure to perform well this season with Damian Lillard. It has gone very poorly, though it has a lot to do with Lillard’s extended absence. Lillard has played just 29 games this season and has been sidelined with an abdominal strain since December. His injury has left the […]

Portland Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard has endured a tough season. Lillard started off the year with some uncharacteristically shaky shooting performances, upon which it was revealed that he was playing through an abdominal injury, which ultimately required surgery. There was hope that the Blazers star would return for this season, though the team recently […]

The Portland Trail Blazers are currently a team that just about no one recognizes due to the departure of CJ McCollum and Norman Powell, while Damian Lillard is sidelined due to injury. But, it shouldn’t be like that for long as the organization plans to bring in a few big pieces this offseason, with one […]

The Portland Trail Blazers had a key decision to make regarding star point guard Damian Lillard. Lillard has not featured in a single game in 2022 after having undergone abdominal surgery in early January. With just 12 games left on the docket for the Trail Blazers, The Athletic’s Shams Charania reported Monday that the superstar point […]

After losing five of their last six games, the Los Angeles Lakers earned a much-needed win Friday night. Down three with seconds left, Russell Westbrook made a three-pointer to force overtime against the Toronto Raptors. Tie it at the buzzer? Why Not? pic.twitter.com/q50pxcP9F8 — Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) March 19, 2022 The clutch three broke […]

The last time Anfernee Simons took the floor was the last time the Portland Trail Blazers actually looked like they belong in the NBA. That’s not a criticism of the second-round picks, undrafted free agents and G-League call-ups who have comprised Portland’s woefully depleted roster over the last few days, or even an aspersion on […]

Officially, the Portland Trail Blazers are still leaving the door open for Damian Lillard to return before season’s end. The team announced late last month that Lillard had passed the “initial phase” of rehabilitation from mid-January surgery on his abdomen, and would soon begin the “reconditioning phase” of his recovery. The first week of March […]

The Portland Trail Blazers entered their two-game set with the Minnesota Timberwolves at Target Center one-and-a-half games back of the final spot in the Western Conference play-in tournament. Portland would be underdogs no matter what with Damian Lillard and Jusuf Nurkic sidelined, but at least Minnesota’s absences—Anthony Edwards and Patrick Beverly missed Saturday’s game—ensured it […]

The Portland Trail Blazers are one of the more stable playoff teams in the NBA. Well, at least, they were up until this season. The Blazers entered 2021-22 having made the playoffs in eight straight seasons, the longest active streak in the NBA. But they traded away C.J. McCollum, Norman Powell and other key contributors […]

The New Orleans Pelicans are slowly creeping up the standings of late thanks in large part to the massive contributions of one CJ McCollum. The NBA trade deadline acquisition from the Portland Trail Blazers has played like a man possessed. In nine games with the Pelicans, CJ McCollum is averaging 26.3 points, 5.8 rebounds, 5.8 […]

Chris Paul is out at least another month with a broken right thumb, and Devin Booker entered health and safety protocols hours before tipoff. Even with their opponent absent both members of basketball’s best backcourt, though, the depleted, rebuilding Portland Trail Blazers were still sent to a third straight blowout loss. The Phoenix Suns routed […]

Damian Lillard and trade rumors: name a more iconic duo. The Portland Trail Blazers star has been the subject of speculation for as long as he’s been with the team. Countless fans and “analysts” have advocated for Lillard to stay with his original or, more popularly, for Lillard to demand a trade. For other members […]

Damian Lillard is making his way toward full health while from abdominal surgery. What that means for his potential return to the floor this season, though, the Portland Trail Blazers still won’t officially confirm. Portland announced on Sunday that Lillard has passed the “initial phase” of his rehabilitation “without setback,” and will be re-evaluated in […]

The Portland Trail Blazers suffered another blowout loss to the Golden State Warriors on Thursday night, , and at this point, it’s getting a little bit embarrassing. This is exactly what Charles Barkley had in mind when he called out Portland’s lackluster play as well as how they refuse to even consider trading away Damian […]

Damian Lillard has had some memorable duels against the Golden State Warriors over the years. The Portland Trail Blazers star has proved himself as a worthy adversary, but his teams have just never been stout enough to go up against Stephen Curry and co. Instead of growing any contempt towards Curry and the Warriors for […]

Portland Trail Blazers superstar point guard Damian Lillard joined Draymond Green on his podcast for a full hour. They discussed a range of topics. At one point, Lillard references the fact that he has not played with an All-Star since early in his career. That prompted the obvious question from Green. Do you think that’s […]

It’s been quite some time since we’ve seen Damian Lillard take the court for the Portland Trail Blazers. The All-Star point guard recently underwent surgery to address his abdominal injury, and right now, it still doesn’t sound like he’s going to be back anytime soon. Be that as it may, Lillard recently came out with […]

So much for consternation over a wholly transformative trade deadline. Instead of reeling from finally breaking up its longtime core, the Portland Trail Blazers entered the All-Star break winners of four straight games, playing with activity and intensity that had often been absent during Chauncey Billups’ inaugural season on the sidelines. The Blazers can’t count […]

Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum weren’t exactly surprised when they were finally split up. Both have clarified as much in wake of the latter’s move to the New Orleans Pelicans, with McCollum even acknowledging he had a say in his ultimate destination at the trade deadline. Just because they’d discussed the likelihood of McCollum playing […]

Anfernee Simons didn’t quite see the gravity of his breakout season coming. Entering his fourth NBA season firmly behind Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum in the Portland Trail Blazers’ backcourt, he expected to play a supporting role for a contender instead of cementing himself as a budding star with Lillard watching from the sidelines and […]

The bond between ex-Portland Trail Blazers teammates Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum runs deep. This pair spent many years together terrorizing the league as one of the most prolific scoring backcourts in all of the NBA. Their memorable run as teammates, however, came to an end a few weeks ago after the Blazers traded McCollum […]

Stephen Curry is not exactly a fan favorite in the city of Cleveland. Even before he stepped foot in Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, a handful of people felt the Warriors guard was already slighted ever so subtly by the NBA All-Star organizers. During the Clutch Challenge event on Rising Stars Friday, the spots on the court […]

The Portland Trail Blazers shockingly committed to a rebuild when they traded star guard CJ McCollum to the New Orleans Pelicans. The core of McCollum and fellow sharpshooter Damian Lillard was seemingly close to winning a title, but the elusive championship always appeared to be just out of reach. As such, Lillard has had to […]

The Portland Trail Blazers have had a tumultuous season thus far. They’ve shipped off most of their veteran talent, including Damian Lillard’s beloved backcourt partner CJ McCollum. It wouldn’t be surprising to most if the point guard would sour with his loyalty to the franchise he’s been on for a decade. However, it’s tough to […]