SFGATE: Lillard time: Blazers guard continues to beat the odds

Lillard time: Blazers guard continues to beat the odds"
Published on April 29, 2019 at 04:04AM by By ANNE M. PETERSON, AP Sports Writer

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — After he made his unforgettable 3-pointer at the buzzer to clinch Portland's first-round series over Oklahoma City, Damian Lillard was mobbed by his teammates.

The television camera moved into the scrum, and Lillard looked directly into the lens. His expression was pure told-you-so.

"Obviously he can score the ball with the best of them. But Dame has a chip on his shoulder, and he has since the day he walked into this league," said Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green. "Just the way he grinds, he played like a guy from Oakland with a chip on his shoulder and a guy who has been doubted forever."

The doubters don't bother the 6-foot-3 Lillard. They seem to motivate him, fuel his hunger to prove them wrong.

He enters the NBA conference semifinals on a roll, as confident as ever.

And it's not just because of the 37-footer that eliminated the Thunder: He had 50 points in last Tuesday's deciding game, a 118-115 Game 5 victory that sent the Blazers through to the Western Conference semifinals for the first time in three seasons. He had 34 points in the first half and finished with 10 3-pointers, second most ever in the playoffs.

He averaged 33 points over the five games against the Thunder, best for a playoff series in franchise history.

He has the Nuggets attention — along with the rest of the NBA.

"Damian Lillard's on a tear right now," Denver's Paul Millsap acknowledged.

Lillard averaged 23.8 points per game to lead the Blazers in the regular season. Portland finished third in the Western Conference with 53 wins for a sixth straight appearance in the playoffs. Lillard has been on each of those teams.

"This was not a coming-out party. This is who he is," said Blazers guard Seth Curry. "You watch basketball, you pay attention, you watch...