Portland Guard Damian Lillard scored 50 points Thursday night as Portland fell to Cleveland. Achieving this feat, Lillard became the 11th player to score at least 50 points in a game this season, going 16-of-28 from the floor and was 13-of-15 from the free throw line. He now has 13 career 50-point regular season games, eighth-most in NBA history
What it means historically
It was Lillard’s 15th career game of scoring 50 or more (including the playoffs), which is the second most of any NBA player since Lillard joined the NBA (James Harden has 23). He became one of only three players with 10 or more 50-point games over the last 10 seasons, joining Harden and Stephen Curry. Also, Lillard moved into 76th in scoring on the NBA’s all-time list, with 18,327 points, passing Dave Bing.
Perfect timing for Lillard
After Tuesday’s loss to Orlando, Portland had three chances in the final seconds to tie the game – none of the attempts by Lillard – he gave hints that he might become more assertive to try and snap Portland’s losing streak. Still, Lillard entered Thursday’s game in a significant shooting slump, having hit only 24.7 percent of his 3-pointers over his past nine games. But he made his first two 3’s of the game, and his big night was off-and-running. Still, Portland lost its fifth consecutive game, 119-113 to Cleveland, after being outscored 32-22 in the fourth.
READ ALSO: FAVOURITES AT THE 2023 AUSTRALIAN OPEN
Luka Magic silences LeBron
The Slovenian superstar Doncic led the Mavericks to a double overtime 119-115 win over the Lakers. Doncic finished with a game high 35 points to go with his 14 rebounds and 13 assists.
With a 24-19 record, the Dallas Mavericks are going through the season with a spectacular Doncic as their leader. This new triple-double got him into an exclusive club formed only by four players in NBA history. Luka joins Oscar Robertson, James Harden, and Russell Westbrook as the only four players with 15+ triple-doubles with 30+ points scored.
Mad impressive 😳😳