This is the first great moment of “Dame Time”. For his first playoffs, Damian Lillard thus qualifies its Blazers for the conference semi-final with a legendary shot, at the buzzer, against the Rockets.
“It’s definitely the most important shoot of my life…for now”said the mischievous leader after this completely crazy meeting (99-98), which closed an incredible series (4-2), marked by three overtimes and numerous decisive shots against the Houston of James Harden and Dwight Howard.
“It was an incredible victory, and I don’t know if it could have been more dramatic”confided Terry Stotts. ” I think that he (Damian Lillard) lives for these moments. It was a remarkable shoot. »
There are only 9 tenths of a second left on the clock when Nicolas Batum is about to take the throw-in. The Rockets lead 98-96 and are preparing to return to Texas for a Game 7 with home advantage .
See you with Spurs in the next round
But Damian Lillard surprises Chandler Parsons on his start and surprisingly appears alone in front of his French teammate, clapping his hands to quickly claim the ball from him. Nicolas Batum complies, Chandler Parsons is too far away and Damian Lillard assassinates Houston at the buzzer, even though Kevin McHale had instructed his players to avoid offering a 3-pointer at all costs…
Even with a little space, the shot is not easy at all for a right-hander, and it sends the Moda Center into a trance.
“We felt we were a great team”explained Nicolas Batum. “We can do something special. We said it the first day of training camp: 'We know we can beat these guys,' and we did it. It was a crazy match. There have been some crazy matches in this series. We will remember this series, but we must move forward. We're going back to Texas. »
It is in fact the Spurs who then appear on the road to Portland. Problem: Gregg Popovich's men are untouchable this season, on the way to the title after the disillusionment of the previous year, and they will quickly take care of bringing Damian Lillard and the Blazers down from their cloud (4-1) .
