After a surprising Game 1 win over the Los Angeles Lakers, the Portland Trail Blazers are having a rough outing in Game 2.
Not only did they fall behind by as many as 33 points, they also lost their superstar, Damian Lillard, to a left index finger injury late in the third quarter.
Lillard has been arguably the best player in the NBA since the 2019-20 season resumed in late July. He averaged 37.6 points and 9.6 assists in the eight seeding games, of which Portland won six.
Those efforts earned Lillard the designation of this season’s Most Valuable Bubble Player.
The run included a 51-point game against the Philadelphia 76ers and a 61-point eruption against the Dallas Mavericks in the very next game.
In Game 1 against the Lakers, Lillard cooled off a bit, but he still had 34 points to key Portland’s 100-93 win.
Needless to say, if Lillard is unable to play in even one game of the series against L.A., Portland’s chances of advancing will fall precipitously.
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