After the Portland Trail Blazers didn’t enjoy much success in the 2021-22 season, some NBA fans had forgotten about just how effective Damian Lillard can be. The Portland Trail Blazers guard is one of the league’s best players, and he showed it in the team’s overtime win over the Phoenix Suns. He scored 41 points on good efficiency, and many would agree was the best player on the court throughout the game.
Lillard also excitingly impacted the game. The Blazers looked like they would go down in overtime, but they rallied to make a 7-0 run in the final minute or so of OT. With Phoenix having what looked like the last possession, Deandre Ayton was fouled with 1.2 seconds on the clock. Needing both free throws to tie the game up and go to double overtime, Ayton bricked the first clutch free throw and then intentionally had to miss the second. And Lillard played a role in that.
Damian Lillard On What He Said To Deandre Ayton Before His Missed Free Throw
Many players try to play mind games with their opponents during the clutch, and Damian Lillard did the same. With Ayton going to the free-throw line, the camera spotted Lillard going up to Ayton and saying something to him.
Dame in the ear of Deandre Ayton before he attempted the game-tying free throws. Looks at him in the eyes and says “hell nah” after walking away. Ayton then missed it. https://t.co/pU9Em4uMTC pic.twitter.com/RLfhowRyin
— Rob Perez (@WorldWideWob) October 22, 2022
Whatever it was, Ayton bricked his free throw, and the Blazers won, which meant Dame was asked about it after everything was over. And his words were shared by Blazers reporter Sean Highkin on Twitter.
https://twitter.com/highkin/status/1583695147295916032
“I just asked him, ‘have you ever been in this situation before?’ I wanted him to think about it a little bit. And then when he ignored me, I felt like he was thinking about it.”
Being in that situation is never easy for any player, and Ayton is still relatively new to the league. He may no longer be a rookie, but he hasn’t been in this late-game situation often before. And Lillard taking the time to remind him of that at the moment surely played a part in the big man not being able to make the clutch shots.
Whatever it may be, the Blazers came away with the victory, and the Suns were on the losing side of a clutch battle. They have made it their identity in recent years to win at the death, and while this doesn’t negate that, it will definitely play on Ayton’s mind until he actually makes some crucial free throws the next time of asking.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dsl21duqOHw
