TUALATIN, Ore. — Damian Lillard and the Portland Trail Blazers returned to their Tualatin practice facility Tuesday, answering questions about their precarious playoff positioning.
After a 132-120 overtime loss to the Mavericks, their third loss in four games and seventh loss in the last 10, Lillard talked about the sense of control that’s helped them maneuver an 82-game season that most thought would have forgotten them by now.
It’s that sense of control the Blazers need if they want to hold their position in the West or have any hope of moving up.
“We got on the plane after the last game and I looked around and just about everybody was on the iPad watching the game,” Lillard said about the team’s attitude on the ride home from Dallas. “We were like ‘man, look at this play, you know what I mean?’ We didn’t play great, we missed a lot of open shots. We didn’t defend great and we got a chance to win at the end of regulation. We come out and play a better game tomorrow and we go get the win.”
Since the first day of the season, the Blazers have exerted control over their own destiny.
And it’s that control that Lillard wants the team to keep in mind with the Blazers holding a one-half game lead for 6th place in the West as of Tuesday.
“We’re in control,” Lillard said. “We can control what happens. With eight of the games being at home, us being ahead of them right now. We have to step ahead.”
Lillard, in many ways, has been the driving force in the Blazers exerting that control that many thought was out of their power before the season.
But the first 71 games of this season have proved Lillard’s belief was not delusional as they head towards the final 11. He feels the same way he did when the season began. In fact, he feels even better.
“I feel the way I feel because our team has done the same thing through good and bad times,” he said. “We’ve done the same things. We’ve worked hard. Stayed together. Even after a tough loss there was no pointing figures, there’s no going into the locker room and it’s silence with nobody talking to each other. We carry on.”
The Blazers are carrying on, but also sense the pressure of the moment with just 1 1/2 games separating them and the ninth place Utah Jazz.
Wednesday they get a chance for revenge against the Mavericks.
Dirk Nowitzki turned back the clock, going for 40 on the Blazers while Deron Williams had 31 points and 16 assists.
And part of dealing with that pressure is having fun. Basketball is a game after all.
“This is the fun part,” Lillard said. “This is where everything is on the line. We’re in a good spot with 11 games left. Coming into the season, if you would have told me we would be in the sixth spot with 11 games to go and eight of them at home, I’ll take it, let’s do it. I would have felt good about it then and I feel even better about it now.”
