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Eric WoodyardESPN
Five points behind the Chicago Bulls on Saturday night, with 8.9 seconds left, the Portland Trail Blazers entered what NBA fans came to know simply as “Dame Time.”
Damian Lillard hit a 37-point 3-point shot with less than 10 seconds left to put the Blazers in two points. The Blazers then tied Bulls star Zach LaVine and won the jump ball – which eventually ended up in Lillard’s hands.
Lillard continued to drill a step back with 3 noises over Lauri Markkanen’s long arms to beat Chicago 123-122.
“This is special, because in these situations where we are down by five, I think that with 11 seconds left, these are the moments when the winning team thinks that the game is almost over,” said Lillard, 14 points in the fourth. “And the opposing team is discouraged.”
Not Lillard.
Blazer coach Terry Stotts struggled with words to describe Lillard’s clutch gene after the victory.
“He is born. He is given by God,” Stotts said. “He was born with him and you can’t teach him.”
Lillard finished with a maximum score of 44 points, 9 assists and 5 rebounds and hit his third career game win, including the playoffs. This is the most in the history of the Trail Blazers, according to ESPN Stats & Information research.
For Lillard, it was also the 35th game of 40 points in his career, more than double that of any other player in franchise history. Clyde Drexler followed with 17 points.
Lillard’s teammates, Enes Kanter and Gary Trent Jr., were not surprised by his late heroism. Inside United Center fans in Chicago, Kanter was among the first teammates to greet him with a hug. Kanter says he’s “used to that shot,” but also admits it’s “incredible what he can do.”
So is Trent.
“I was shocked the first time I came here as a rookie, seeing him from Day 1, whether the training is over or the games are over,” Trent added. “But now, right now, that’s what he’s doing. No one is surprised in any way. He’s taking great photos. He did it this time, after each time, so at this point, I knew he was coming in. when he shot her. “
Chicago followed up with 19 the night before, rising back to make an equalizer in the second half. Markkanen finished with 31 points in the team, with six rebounds, and LaVine contributed with 26 points, with 7 rebounds and 4 assists.
Portland played without Jusuf Nurkic (right wrist fracture), CJ McCollum (middle leg sprain), Derrick Jones Jr. (left foot sprain) and Zach Collins (left ankle stress fracture).
According to Elias Sports Bureau data, this is the first time a jump ball and a buzzer-winning game have been held in the same possession in the last 10 seconds since April 30, 2006. The Los Angeles Lakers won a jump ball against the Suns and Kobe Bryant hit the winning buzzer-beater of the game.
After getting his hands on the blow on Saturday, Lillard credited his relatives for planting their roots inside him to push adversity into critical moments.
“It started in my own family. This is crazy and I think that’s why I always mean my upbringing and the kind of family I come from just because of the challenge and how competitive it is in my own family,” Lillard said. “It can be something like a spelling bee. It can be anything. We compete to the death and it doesn’t matter. You are held to a certain standard in my family where it is as if you were built for the low moments, you will be built to cope appropriately high moments.
“Your skin will be hard,” he added. “You will be prepared to stand up and you will be prepared to face failure. But, you will learn to keep moving forward no matter what the outcome.”