Damian Lillard drops 45 to move Blazers closer to 8-seed (Video)

Damian Lillard had a huge game for the Blazers on Thursday.

The Portland Trail Blazers look like a new team in the NBA bubble. Carmelo Anthony is hitting big shots and most notably, Jusuf Nurkic is back in a big way.

But throughout all of the ups and downs, Damian Lillard has remained consistent. He is averaging over 28 points per game this season and went off Thursday night against the Denver Nuggets, finishing with 45 points in 41 minutes. He went a mind-blowing 11-for-18 from deep and helped his team pick up a huge victory as they chase the 8-seed in the Western Conference.

Damian Lillard’s monster night

The win puts the Blazers 0.5 games behind the Memphis Grizzlies for that 8-seed in the West. Portland is already in the play-in scenario, but landing in eighth place would get them out of that chase and into a more comfortable position at a time when the Phoenix Suns are surging as well.

Lillard has gone off in the bubble. He had 29 points in the opener, followed by marks of 30 and 21 before his 45-point outburst against Denver. His Blazers are off to a 3-1 start and are one of the better-performing teams in Orlando.

He was joined by Gary Trent Jr. in the 3-point column Thursday night as the guard went 7-for-10 from deep. The entire team had 23 made 3-pointers. The Nuggets had 14 of their own, but it simply was not enough.

The Blazers made it all the way to last year’s Western Conference Finals before being swept by the Golden State Warriors. That came without Nurkic on the floor. A slow start this season can be turned around with another playoff berth, and a team like the Los Angeles Lakers would have quite the tough opponent in the first round if the Blazers can win the 8-seed.

No team is going to be able to stop Portland if Lillard shoots the way he did Thursday night. He played so well that Anthony and CJ McCollum combined for 20 points and the team still won by 10.