Damian Lillard’s Top 5 Rookie Performances
Mar 8, 2013; San Antonio, TX, USA; Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard (0) shoots against the San Antonio Spurs during the second half at the AT
#4 – Sizzling in San Antonio
March 8, 2013 136-106 (W)
Stats: 12-20, 35 points, 9 assists, 0 turnovers
Unfortunately, this game comes with a Tony Parker sized asterisk, as the Spurs’ star point guard was out with an ankle injury, but that can only dampen Lillard’s 35 point performance so much. No matter who the Spurs roll out, beating them on their own floor is no easy task, and the Blazers not only beat them, they torched them. The 136 points surrendered were the most by the Spurs since moving to the AT&T Center a decade ago, and Lillard was almost single-handedly the spark plug. Consider this: in Lillard’s 40 minutes on the floor, the Blazers outscored the Spurs by 33 points. In LaMarcus Aldridge’s 34 minutes on the floor, the Spurs actually outscored the Blazers, despite ultimately losing by 30.