Monday's 118-110 road win over Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets was a strong statement that this Portland Trail Blazers team is ready to compete with the league's best. Portland is now 5-1 and looks improved from last year's 42-win team, largely thanks to Damian Lillard's return. He's been a great fit for Deni Avdija's downhill game and Portland's shooting woes in general.
In Denver, Lillard took over as Avdija's co-star, stepping up in Ja Morant's absence. Lillard finished with 20 points, 6 assists, and 6 rebounds in 30 minutes. Perhaps the most encouraging thing going forward was how he scored those 20 points. Lillard went 5-of-11 from the field, 1-of-5 from three, and 9-of-10 from the charity stripe.
He took nearly half of Portland's free-throw attempts, getting downhill and attacking the paint. That burst and ability to get by his defender post-Achilles suggest Lillard will continue to have a strong season for the Blazers.
Damian Lillard's strong start to the season is promising for Blazers
We all know he can still shoot, and this was a strange game from three-point land. But it's that ability to score 20 even when the shot somehow isn't falling that made Lillard one of the league's best scorers. And he's showing he still has similar three-level scoring ability at age 36. In fact, Lillard's 6.8 free-throw attempts per game match what he had with the Milwaukee Bucks in 2024-25.
Through six games, Lillard is averaging 19.3 points, 4.0 assists, and 4.3 rebounds on 40/33/81 shooting splits. Hopefully, he can improve the shooting efficiency and shake off some of that rust after missing all of last season. Still, the more concerning thing regarding his comeback was the speed, burst, and agility.
The eye test shows he can still get by defenders, which helps take some of that playmaking burden off Avdija, especially with Morant sidelined for most, if not all, of November. And though Lillard's numbers are down across the board this season, you also must consider how many weapons he's playing alongside. His role in Micah Nori's offense is primarily off-ball, especially when Morant is healthy. The Blazers aren't asking Lillard to do as much as they did the first time around, which is a sign of a better team.
There's a reason they have this 5-1 start, and Lillard remains a key contributor to that. He deserves a ton of credit for how hard he worked to get his body back to this point. Part of it reflects the progress in technology and science, as we've seen players like Jayson Tatum, Tyrese Haliburton, and Kevin Durant recover from this brutal injury as well. So far, Lillard looks like another success story in returning close to form.
He can still get around his defender and into the paint, creating scoring opportunities for himself and his teammates. And once that shooting inevitably comes around, it will give the Blazers an even bigger offensive boost.
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