All Portland Trail Blazers star Deni Avdija could do was rest his hands atop his head in apparent disbelief. From the bench, feisty two-way guard Chris Youngblood was less contained, jumping so high he almost clicked his heels together. The 19,367 fans at the Moda Center, well-acquainted with the phenomenon they were witnessing, rose to their feet and met the moment with a thunderous pop.
Damian Lillard had just launched and buried a 30-foot moonshot a step in front of the pinwheel logo against the Oklahoma
City Thunder. The shot, released over the outstretched arm of 7-foot-3 center Aday Mara right before the third-quarter buzzer, caused a massive wave of Dame Time delirium to sweep through the arena on Tuesday night.
“I knew he was gonna shoot,” Youngblood told Blazer’s Edge. “I was like, if this goes in, this crowd is about to go crazy.”
The response from the crowd reached a fever pitch because of the shot, but also because of what preceded it. The deep 3-pointer was just the exclamation point on a vintage third quarter from the Blazers’ all-time leading scorer. Lillard unleashed for 13 points in the frame, nailing 3-pointers from 30 feet, 28 feet and 30 feet. During a pivotal 17-4 Portland run midway through the quarter, he scored or assisted on 12 of those points. The production spearheaded a breakthrough that finally gave Portland separation from OKC, turning a two-point deficit into a double-digit lead. By the time Lillard iced the cake with that highlight 3-pointer, the Blazers led by 17 and were cruising to an impressive 123-103 win over one of the West’s best.
The win helped Lillard and the Blazers improve to 10-3 on the season. They did it in style in front of a national audience on NBA Coast 2 Coast Tuesday on NBC and Peacock.
For the 36-year-old Lillard’s teammates — many of whom weren’t on the team or even in the league during his previous, storied tenure with the franchise — this was their first true immersion within Dame Time. Yes, Lillard has had good games and moments this season. He went for 25 and six 3s in the season opener against Phoenix. He put a dagger in the Los Angeles Lakers with a clutch 3 on the road in late October. But he had yet to go on an acute attack like the one in that third quarter against OKC on Tuesday.
“It’s just like full circle, because you grew up watching him,” the 24-year-old Youngblood said. “ … For like a split second, it’s surreal.”
“Watching those highlights growing up as a kid and seeing all those big shots — being on the court is definitely different,” added Portland center Donovan Clingan, 22, who was chest-bumping Lillard at halfcourt following one of those 3-point splashes. “ … I was just telling him, man, reminding him that’s who he is and that’s what he does. He’s a bad man.”
Blazers backup center Robert Williams III presented a unique description of Lillard when he’s on a tear. He said it’s like watching a “yo-yo” because when Lillard shoots the ball, it looks like it’s on an automatic string coming out of his hands.
“To actually see it in person, like I said, shit look like a yo-yo, bro,” Williams said. “It’s different.”
“That’s the first time I’ve ever heard that,” said a chuckling Lillard at the postgame podium about the yo-yo comparison. “That’s the first time I’ve ever heard that. But if Rob said it, I’ll take, it man. That’s my dog right there.”
The big-time Dame run in the third quarter pushed him to 25 points and headlined the victory for Portland. But the performance was propped up by a foundational team effort that featured contributions up and down the roster — from a workman-like 24 points by Deni Avdija to the energetic bench minutes of Youngblood and third-string center Branden Carlson. Plus, after Blazers head coach Micah Nori called on his team in practice this week to pick up the defensive intensity, the group responded with a disciplined, dogged effort against Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and OKC’s movement-heavy offense.
The all-around group performance kept the Blazers toe-to-toe in the fight with OKC, setting the stage for the knockout punch from Lillard in that raucous third quarter.
“When your heart is pure and your heart is in the right place, it’s funny how good things happen for you,” Nori said. “And quite honestly, that locker room, that’s the way they all are.”
