Damian Lillard adds the MVP Award to his 3-point championship to sweep All-Star weekend.
In the NBA All-Star basketball game on Sunday, February 18, 2024 in Indianapolis, the East defeated the West 211-186. Milwaukee Bucks guard Damian Lillard (0) raises the MVP trophy. (Image by Darron Cummings/AP) (AP/Darron Cummings)
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Damian Lillard, a guard for the Milwaukee Bucks, traveled to Indianapolis with the intention of winning.
With a rare All-Star weekend sweep, the first-time All-Star starter returned home on Sunday.
A day after making his second straight 3-pointer, Lillard won MVP after scoring 39 points, making 11 3-pointers, and finishing with six assists, three rebounds, and one steal in the East’s historic 211-186 victory over the West. He is the first athlete to win two titles in a row since Michael Jordan in 1988.
In a game like this, Lillard stated, “I just know you’ve got to keep shooting the ball and I think it’s going to be pretty loose and you’re going to get your opportunities.” “I just told myself that I’m going to continue firing and acting aggressively. I felt like I was going after it after I watched a couple enter.
He did, in fact, and he did it with style.
Nothing seemed to be beyond his shooting range, and at times it seemed like he couldn’t miss.
The NBA logo inspired the first three plays of the eight-time All-Star. He opened the third quarter with a half-court pull-up three-pointer, and he finished the game with another half-court three-pointer.
Towards the end of his first game with the East, Lillard finished 14 of 26 from the field and 11 of 23 on threes for a team that broke the records for total points and threes made in an All-Star Game with 42.
His performance was equally impressive to Kevin Durant, the two-time NBA champion and two-time All-Star MVP, as it was to his Bucks teammate Giannis Antetokounmpo, the two-time league MVP.
“Playing defense is difficult when someone is shooting 30- and 40-foot shots over you,” Durant remarked. “Tonight’s shooting display was excellent.”
Lillard was one of the three players for the East to score more than thirty points, and one of eight players who scored in double figures. After competing in the Slam Dunk competition on Saturday, Indiana guard Tyrese Haliburton scored 32 points and drained ten three-pointers after playing in two games on Saturday night. Boston guard Jaylen Brown finished with 36 points.
Twice, Lillard outperformed them both.
In the 3-point competition’s tiebreaking round, he was one of three competitors who defeated Haliburton; however, on the night’s last shot, Brown fell short against two-time Slam Dunk champion Mac McClung.
In the meantime, Lillard entered the 3-point shootout tied for the lead after the first round, survived the tiebreaker, and won his second consecutive championship with his last-second baskets of the game.
Lillard, who struggled with injuries early in the season, was obviously back to full strength by Sunday.
With a broad smile, Antetokounmpo remarked, “You could tell he was going for it,” possibly thinking about what the Bucks could accomplish with this Lillard over the course of the remaining 26 games. As a team, all we needed to do was
get him the ball, and he performed his best function. He has a lot of influence over events. He produced ten, eleven? He truly deserved to win MVP.
get him the ball, and he performed his best function. He has a lot of influence over events. He produced ten, eleven? He truly deserved to win MVP.
After being traded to Milwaukee in the off-season, Lillard may have had an even more significant weekend away from the court. With Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee staff in town, Lillard had the opportunity to spend more time getting to know and getting to know his third different coach since being acquired from Portland in an offseason trade. Doc Rivers, the new coach of the Bucks, led the East.
Nonetheless, this weekend still held significance for the league’s 2013 Rookie of the Year and 2018 first-team all-NBA selection two days. And in just, he swept the awards with two outstanding shooting performances, making the kind of statement that only he could.
Anytime you’re recognized in the same category as Mike Jordan, it’s a significant achievement and an honor, even
If it’s the weekend of the All-Stars, Lillard said. Since 1988, more people would have done it if it was that easy. Therefore, if it’s All-Star weekend, that’s a big accomplis,” Lillard stated. Since 1988, more people would have done it if it was that easy. Thus, that represents a significant achievement for me.
Leave a Reply