Damian Lillard's game-winner on Tuesday was the closing exclamation point to an unbelievable stretch of performances. He averaged 33 points per game in a series where conversation around his beef with Russell Westbrook dominated headlines. Lillard never seemed phased, though. This Blazers team looks completely different than the one that was swept by the Pelicans last season, and can spell trouble for other teams in the West.
Lillard finished with 50 points in Game 5, the most important of which were those final three.
"I think he's probably one of the most underrated players in the NBA," Danny Kanell said of Lillard on Wednesday's "Off the Bench."
Raja Bell added that Lillard might by so overlooked because he plays in Portland.
"They just don't get [primetime games] all the time in Portland," he said. "You couple that with their recent failures in playoff situations last year... Jrue Holiday ate him up... I think it took a couple of failures on the big stage for Damian Lillard to figure out the recipe for him and his team to have success."
Bell noted that he picked the Thunder to win the series because he thought Westbrook and Paul George were better. He owned his bad call and said it was a statement for the Blazers, who will now try to get past either the Nuggets or the Spurs.
