The team's relentless surge is fueled by its freewheeling, box-score-stuffing backcourt. Chocolate Jesus (CJ) McCollum has gone full-blown deus ex machina this year. He can score from anywhere on the basketball court. I'm pretty sure he's hit meaningful shots while enjoying an espresso at the café inside Powell's. The one in Beaverton. During an away game.
Damian Lillard was left off the All-Star team, and responded to that snub by pouring in 51 points in a startling victory against the historically dominant Golden State Warriors. That Lillard internalized and thrived on the slight isn't surprising, he's made an entire career out of soaring over low expectations. What is surprising is that he was left off the All-Star team in the first place. He's one of just a few players in the league who rates in the top 10 in both scoring and assists. He's the best player on a team that is firmly entrenched in the playoff hunt.
The very idea that Lillard isn't an All-Star seemingly stems from the pre-season identity of the Trail Blazers, which was that they were going to be bad... really, really, really bad. Smart people thought they were going to be one of the worst teams in the league. People who get paid to have opinions about basketball, and rightfully so, thought Lillard would be putting up good stats on a terrible team. The narrative was the Blazers would suck and wait for next year. That narrative is broken.
The Portland Trail Blazers are good as hell, and it's awful.
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