The NBA World Reacts To Damian Lillard's Epic All-Star Shooting Display
Damian Lillard didn't win All-Star MVP. Giannis Antetokounmpo scored more points than his 32, too, and made history by not missing a single one of his 16 field goal attempts. Steph Curry also connected on eight triples, and Chris Paul doled out a whopping 16 assists.
Still, the biggest story resulting from Team LeBron's 170-150 victory over Team Durant in the 2021 All-Star Game was Lillard's epic shooting display, one that left his Trail Blazers teammates, superstar peers and many more across the NBA landscape in awe.
LeBron James, who's handpicked Lillard for his team each of the last three seasons, couldn't believe Lillard and Curry took him up on in-game challenges to continue extending their shooting range.
They hit back-to-back halfcourt shots in the first half, and Lillard sent his team to victory in the fourth quarter with another launch from mere steps inside the All-Star logo.
Curry sure seemed to enjoy wearing the same jersey as Lillard, too.
Draymond Green has seen his fair share of scorching shooting performances from a pair of backcourt teammates. Klay Thompson, remember, still holds the NBA record for most points scored in a single quarter. But he couldn't quite comprehend what Lillard and Curry were doing in Atlanta, either.
Paul George was even forced to reconsider his infamous assessment that Lillard's legendary series-ending triple in the first round of the 2019 playoffs against the Oklahoma City Thunder was a "bad shot." After watching Lillard drain eight threes in the All-Star Game, over half of which came from beyond 30 feet, George now has a different take.
C.J. McCollum, Jusuf Nurkic and Nassir Little were no a bit less surprised at Lillard's ridiculous shot-making, but still seemed no less amazed.
Antetokounmpo took home MVP honors for his perfect paint dominance. The Bucks superstar, obviously, was a deserving winner of the Kobe Bryant Trophy.
But former Blazers guard Nolan Smith made an excellent point about the nature of Antetokounmpo's points compared to Lillard's in an All-Star Game where defense was typically nonexistent.
The hardware, obviously, would have been nice. But Lillard will no doubt leave Atlanta satisfied regardless, proud to represent Portland in a way that doesn't just cement himself as one of the league's best players, but one of its most respected, too.