PORTLAND, Ore. — The Portland Trail Blazers on Friday had their first practice since their first-round series win over Oklahoma City in the NBA playoffs.
It was the first time we’ve heard from the Blazers since Tuesday night, when Damian Lillard hit a spectacular 37-foot 3-pointer at the buzzer to win Game 5 and clinch the series against the Thunder.
Lillard said he went home that night, put his son to bed and was up texting with friends about the game until about 4 a.m. He said he woke up the next day and his shot was all he saw on TV. While Lillard said the attention his shot is getting across the world is great, he’s ready to focus on what’s next.
“It’s a great feeling to go out that way in that type of series. But at the end of the day, it’s just the first round. You don’t want to get too emotional and excited about it, and then try to move forward and then you lay an egg because you were too emotional about it. It was a great feeling. I was excited about it. But I’m ready to move on from it,” Lillard said.
It’s the second time the Blazers All-Star point guard has hit a game-winning shot as time expired to finish a playoff series. He previously did it in a first-round series against the Houston Rockets in 2014.
Lillard said the feeling after the shot against Oklahoma City on Tuesday was much different than the feeling five years ago.
“The first time I made it against the Rockets, I was super excited. I didn’t know what to do with myself. Then the other day when it happened, I was like excited about it, but I was kind of thinking about the next series. I wasn’t looking at it like this a is a big deal. I was looking at it like alright, we got that out of the way,” he said.
Lillard said he saw videos of fans reacting to his shot and couldn’t help but think about what would happen if the Blazers have success on an even bigger stage.
RELATED: ‘What is he doing? OHHHH!!!’: Blazers share video of fans losing their minds after Lillard’s shot
Lillard also joked about Jusuf Nurkic showing up on the team’s bench during fourth quarter of Game 5. The Blazers center, who Lillard has affectionately called his “little big brother,” hadn’t been on the bench during a game since suffering a season-ending leg injury in March. Nurkic arrived with a “Got Bricks” shirt, a jab at Oklahoma City guard Russell Westbrook.
CJ McCollum said it’s been easy for him to move on from Lillard’s shot. During the days off, McCollum said he’s focused on taking care of himself. He’s also catching up on some TV shows, including 'Game of Thrones.'
One of the questions for the Blazers heading into the second round of the playoffs is the health of center Enes Kanter, who has stepped to up after the injury to Nurkic. Kanter averaged 13 points and 10 rebounds in the first-round series against Oklahoma City but got hurt in Game 5. During his press conference after Game 5, Kanter said he was dealing with a separated shoulder but vowed to play in the second round.
On Friday, Kanter said he’s still in a lot of pain and taking his injury day-to-day.
Fortunately for Kanter, the Blazers get a few more days of rest before having to play again. The first game of Portland’s second-round series will be on Monday. They’ll play the winner of the Denver/San Antonio series, which will be decided in Game 7 on Saturday night. If the Spurs win, the Blazers will have home-court advantage and Game 1 will be at the Moda Center. If the Nuggets advance, they’ll have home-court advantage and the Blazers will travel to Denver for Game 1.
3-on-3 Blazers podcast
Did you know KGW has a Portland Trail Blazers podcast? On the latest episode of the 3-on-3 Blazers podcast, KGW's Orlando Sanchez, Nate Hanson and Jared Cowley share our reactions to Lillard's walk-off game-winner, talk about his unbelievable first-round performance against the Thunder, and look ahead to the second round.
Listen to the most recent edition of the 3-on-3 Blazers podcast
- on Apple podcasts/iTunes
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