Damian Lillard delivered a sensational performance on Wednesday, scoring a season-high 60 points on just 29 shots and 10 free throws, leading the Portland Trail Blazers to a 134-124 victory over the Utah Jazz.
This achievement places Lillard among the elite, joining Karl Malone and James Harden as the only players in NBA history to score 60 points with fewer shot attempts, though he had the fewest free throws of the three, according to ESPN.
In his post-game interview, Lillard expressed confidence in his ability to influence the game when he’s in such a scoring rhythm. “When you’re in that kind of groove, you always feel like you can get it back going in the right direction for the team,” he said. “You get in that type of zone, you feel like you can control the outcome.”
This marks Lillard’s fourth career 60-point game, and it stands out for its efficiency. He made nine of 15 three-point attempts and shot 72% from the field against the Jazz. With this performance, Lillard also climbed to sixth on the NBA’s all-time three-point list, surpassing Vince Carter with his eighth three-pointer of the game.
Despite his exceptional performance, Lillard described the game as feeling “pretty simple” and noted that he approached it with the mindset to be aggressive but not overly forceful. “Any time you score 60 points, it’s special, but I think this one I felt like it came pretty simple,” he said. “It was just different because it felt so simple.”
Although the Jazz managed to keep the game close for a while, Lillard’s efficiency finally overwhelmed them. He became only the fifth player to record four 60-point games in his career, joining a distinguished group that includes Wilt Chamberlain, Kobe Bryant, James Harden, and Michael Jordan.
In a display of his selflessness, Lillard chose not to push for a career-high score, which stands at 61 points. “I wasn’t going to be that thirsty to come back down with that much time left in the game just to get a career-high,” he explained. “I didn’t feel like that was the right thing to do, so that was how it ended.”
Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups was impressed by Lillard’s performance and his decision not to chase a career-high. “That’s the only reason I kept him in the game,” Billups said. “I would have got him out. I told him when I pulled him over, I said, ‘Bro, what are you doing? We’re running the same play.
I’m trying to get you your career high.’ He looked at me and said, ‘OK, I’ll get it.’ Bro, I would have got you out and got you the standing O you deserved. That just speaks to who he is. He wasn’t even thinking about that.” Lillard and the Portland Trail Blazers will look to continue their momentum when they face the Toronto Raptors on Sunday.