Getty Lakers star Lebron James plays defense on Blazers guard Damian Lillard.
Brooklyn Nets point guard, Spencer Dinwiddie had quite the admission about the Los Angeles Lakers’ chances in the NBA Playoffs.
I don’t think the Lakers wanna see LillyPad in the first round without Avery
“I don’t think the Lakers wanna see LillyPad in the first round without Avery,” Dinwiddie tweeted.
“I don’t know Dame personally, so if there’s something wrong with the nickname like y’all saying in the comments then I apologize.”
For those keeping score at home: Dinwiddie was talking about the Portland Trail Blazers’ chances against the Los Angeles Lakers in round one of the NBA Playoffs.
The Blazers are currently on a two-game winning streak and sit at 32-8 in the NBA’s Western Conference and are sitting right under eighth-seeded Memphis Grizzlies in the standings.
The Grizzlies have lost five games in a row.
After making an appearance in the Western Conference Finals last year against the Golden State Warriors, the Blazers entered into this season with significant struggles.
Blazers All-Star CJ McCollum knew what task the Blazers were facing going into the home stretch.
In an interview with Regal Radio’s Josh Hicks back in February, McCollum discussed Portland’s plan. “We’re all going to have to step up,” he told Hicks.
“We’re competing for the No. 8 spot in the West and we are going to have our hands full.”
Damian Lillard sat out at points during the season and since the NBA’s restart at the bubble at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida, his presence has surely been felt. The Oakland, California native is averaging 29.1 points, 4.4 rebounds, eight assists and one steal per contest.
Thursday evening against the Denver Nuggets, Lillard was unstoppable.
The Weber State product scored 45 points and padded his stats with 12 assists, four rebounds. Lillard also made 11 three-pointers, tying a franchise record he currently owns.
Another added bonus is the return of Blazers big man, Jusuf Nurkic who broke his leg last season in a game against the Brooklyn Nets.Nurkic is coming back into form at the right time.
In Portland’s win against the Houston Rockets on Tuesday, Nurk posted an 18 point, 19 rebound, three assist, one steal and three block outing.
Worth noting: Nurk went 6-of-15 from the field and was perfect from the free throw line shooting 6-of-6 from the charity stripe.
Carmelo Anthony is also locked in on Portland. An addition to the Blazers back in the fall, Melo was instrumental in Portland’s 110-102 win against the Rockets on Tuesday. The former All-Star contributed in two key moments in the final three minutes of the game. With the score tied, Melo blocked a P.J. Tucker 3-pointer and followed that up with a catch-and-shoot dagger 3-pointer with 54 seconds remaining in the game to put Portland up by five.
The Portland Trail Blazers acquired Hassan Whiteside in a four-team trade with the Miami Heat last summer. This season, Whiteside is averaging 15.6 points, 13.7 rebounds and three blocks per contest. Portland will need his big body on both sides of the court.
“He does something that we need, which is to protect the rim,” Damian Lillard told me earlier this season.
“He’s also a lob threat. He’s an athletic big that can run the floor.”