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Andrew LopezESPN
NEW ORLEANS – Another night, another Portland Trail Blazers clutch performance guards Damian Lillard.
Of course, this one featured another Lillard game sealing bucket – his 25th drawn game or field goal in the final 20 seconds of the fourth quarter or in overtime, especially in the NBA since he joined the league in 2012-13 – but the win by 126-124 on the New Orleans Pelicans on Wednesday and the Blazers’ recent success are more than just Lillard’s individual success.
With CJ McCollum, Jusuf Nurkic and Zach Collins wasting time, the streak of six Blazers wins and the eighth in nine games is a “collective effort”.
“I think the beauty of what we are doing now and why it has been so fun and special, like last season, I had a race where for 10 games I was scoring 48 per game, and then the bubble I was scoring 48, 50, 60, just having great performances, but we were not playing so well, “said Lillard.
“We weren’t getting any stops. We weren’t moving the ball. It wasn’t as collective as it is now. … Everyone is coming in and doing their job. I’m not saying that just to give people credit. It seems so because everyone is coming. and doing their job. Without CJ, Nurk and Zach, we won’t win these games if it isn’t collective as it has been. “
Lillard called each rotating Blazers player by name when discussing how the team is having fun this time. But, of course, it doesn’t matter when your superstar goes to 43 points and ties his career high with 16 assists.
Despite New Orleans ‘good score, Lillard says he can see the Blazers’ defense – which came in 28th in defensive efficiency after Wednesday’s games – starting to change.
“I think we’re just stuck on this lately,” said Lillard. “We are much sharper for longer periods of time. The teams run, it happens, we will have a lapse here like any team. Tonight, I thought we played very hard and physically and defensively smart and they had 124 points. I just think that our urgency has increased. We are communicating. We are accepting a challenge. Each guy is committing himself to playing defense and trying hard. “
Portland coach Terry Stotts said he believed the team had improved defensively on returning to a victory against Philadelphia on February 4. In the last eight games, Blazers occupied 13th position in the championship.
“The numbers do not favor us, but we have always had an effort,” added Lillard. “I said that at the beginning of the season. We just weren’t always on the same page in terms of communication.”
Communication was critical for Portland in the final stretch on Wednesday, especially as the Pelicans had the chance to draw or send the game into overtime in the final possession.
After Lillard e-1 put the Blazers in 2 points with 16.5 seconds left, it was obvious that the Pelicans would try to put the ball in the hands of Zion Williamson or Brandon Ingram.
“We watched some of their endgame moves and they kind of mixed up, like the previous move they went to Zion,” said Stotts. “You knew it would be in one of your two hands.”
Pelicans passed the ball to Josh Hart, who played it to Ingram. Williamson went up to set a screen for Ingram, but his supporters have changed, putting Derrick Jones Jr. in Williamson and Robert Covington in Ingram.
Covington covered Ingram in the play, forcing a pass to Lonzo Ball for a deep 3. Hart deflected the ball and she found her way to Ingram in the corner. Ingram took a dribble and placed a close-fisted 14 feet against Carmelo Anthony, who did not fall when Portland secured the victory. A team victory – using defense, that is.
“I think it’s a big win for us, but I don’t think it’s the biggest win for us this season. We played very defensively and very offensively. We just had to stop a little more on the defensive side and that’s what we did and I’m happy to have done, “said Jones. “We will continue to learn from this victory and go back.
“Just by entering this journey, we had the mentality to keep our streak going, and we will continue. We will go out every day and play the right way. We know how we should play and we just have to go there every day and play the right way. we’re doing this, the sky is our limit. “