NBA All-Star Damian Lillard has taken his game to another level in 2018 for the Portland Trail Blazers.
Portland Trail Blazers point guard Damian Lillard has always been a scoring machine. In fact, he is currently on a 116-game double-digit points streak. His 2017-18 campaign has been more of the same. With 50 games under his belt, Lillard is averaging 25.8 points, 6.5 assists, 4.5 rebounds and 1.0 steals per game this year.
His most recent outings emphasize his prowess even more. Lillard dropped 39 points in his last game, a blowout loss on Feb. 11 to the Utah Jazz, and on Feb. 9, he scored a season-high 50 points in a convincing win over the Sacramento Kings.
Lillard has been playing well all season. However, he seems to be running at a higher level since the calendar has turned to 2018. Specifically, things kicked up after he returned from his stint on the injured list.
Lillard’s injury troubles started on Dec. 20 late in the Blazers’ loss to the San Antonio Spurs. He suffered a right hamstring strain during the game and would go on to miss the following five games.
He attempted to return, playing two games at the beginning of the new year. However, Lillard went back to the sidelines thereafter due to a right calf strain. Fortunately, he only missed two more games before getting back on the court.
Now, Lillard has stepped up his game since returning from injury. His scoring efficiency has seen the biggest improvement. He averaged 25.2 points per game in his 31 games pre-injury, shooting 41.8 percent from the field and 34.8 percent from 3-point range. In his 17 games post-injury, that has bumped up to 27.5 points per game on 49.0 percent shooting from the field and 39.2 percent from beyond the arc.
Lillard’s shooting isn’t the only area of improvement. He has also been a better distributor, going from 6.4 assists per game pre-injury to 6.9 a night post-injury. He has notched six or more assists in 14 of his last 17 games.
These shooting and passing improvements converged on Feb. 2. Lillard scored 32 points and dished out 10 assists in a big loss at the Toronto Raptors. That was his sixth double-double of the season, but the first since his return.
On Jan. 22, Lillard’s output was rewarded when he was named Western Conference Player of the Week. That week saw him lead the Blazers to a 3-0 record while dropping two 31-point performances.
But Lillard’s biggest reward was the All-Star selection he earned when the 2018 NBA All-Star reserves were named on Jan. 23. It is Lillard’s third selection of his career and his first since 2015. He will play for the All-Star team selected and captained by Golden State Warriors point guard Stephen Curry.
Unfortunately, the rest of the Blazers roster hasn’t produced as consistently as Lillard. The team is 9-8 since Lillard has returned. However, he still serves as somewhat of a bellwether when he has a hot night. The Blazers are 4-2 over the same span when he scores 30 or more points.
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The Portland Trail Blazers have one more game before All-Star break followed by 24 more to close out the season. As long as Damian Lillard continues to score and distribute efficiently and in volume, the team will be a challenge to defeat every game.