One Of These Things Is Not Like The Other

Some athletes play better against the best.

Damian Lillard has a soft spot for the Golden State Warriors. Seemingly every time Lillard takes on the Warriors, he takes his career best performance to a new level. Wednesday night, Lillard figured he’d slay the Kevin Durant dragon, ya know, while he was at it.

Damian Lillard sprinted out of the gate, scoring 18 points in the 1st quarter, giving the Trailblazers a 40-27 lead. Kevin Durant would spend the rest of the evening chipping away at the Trailblazers’ lead. His 50-point effort simply wasn’t enough, as the Warriors fell 123-117. Durant was literally the only Warrior to show up last night. Seriously, he played 1-on-5 all night. Okay, that’s not true, but that’s how it felt. Durant made 17 field goals, while Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green combined for 18 field goals.

Lillard finished with 44 points, 8 assists, 3 rebounds, and 2 steals in 40 minutes (including going a perfect 12 for 12 from the free throw line).

Add this to the list of Lillard’s outstanding performances against the Warriors:

12/11/17 – 39 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 steals

4/16/17 – 34 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, and 1 block

5/7/16 – 40 points, 5 rebounds, and 10 assists

2/19/16 – 51 points, 7 assists, and 6 steals

Not bad for a guy who’s inexplicably made just 3 All-Star teams in his 6-year career.

From the really good..to the REALLY bad….

The New York Knicks.

Just when you think they can’t stoop any lower, they find a way. Tim Hardaway Jr., the 2nd streakiest shooter in the NBA (J.R. Smith will forever hold that distinction), was en fuego last night. Entering last night’s game, Hardaway Jr. was 5 for his last 41 from 3-point range. THAT’S 12.2%!! Last night, he went 6 for 9 from downtown. You figure it out.

As for the game, the Knicks held a 22-point lead over the Washington Wizards with 11:14 to play in the 3rd quarter. Just 1 minute and 33 seconds later, the lead was 13. And thanks to a 15-point 3rd quarter, the Knicks actually trailed 90-87 heading into the 4th quarter. The end result: 118-113, not them.

How is this possible you ask?!?!

Remember when I told you Hardaway Jr. is streaky??

Well, he dropped 32 points in the 1st half, and just 5 in the 2nd half. That’s how!! Honestly, I’m glad. The Knicks should tank the last 23 games anyway. They should play Emmanuel Mudiay, Frank Ntilikina, and Trey Bruke as much as humanly possible. I swear, if I have to watch Jarrett Jack play 28 minutes 1 more time, I may lose it!!

By the way, the Knicks have now lost 8 games in a row.

As for Kristaps Porzingis, the Knicks will be without his services for approximately 1 year. Porzingis, sent out a photograph, post-surgery, to let Knicks’ fans know he’ll remain positive throughout his rehab process and can’t wait to get back on the court.

So keep your heads up Knicks’ fans. At least you can look forward to 2020….

 

Where does Damian Lillard’s performance rank amongst individual accomplishments this season?? Will the Knicks win another game this season?? Tell me in the comment section below.

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