Doc Rivers Defends Damian Lillard After His Crucial Free Throw Misses Against LA Clippers

The Portland Trail Blazers took a hit to their postseason hopes after they suffered a loss at the hands of the LA Clippers. Damian Lillard gave Portland the lead with less than 20 seconds left on the clock. But he failed to capitalize on the opportunity, which eventually led to the Clippers posting a victory with their second unit. 

Lillard is an excellent free-throw shooter with a career conversion rate of 88.9%. However, against the Clippers, he had a night to forget. Dame got the only free throws in the entire game and missed both of them. This proved to be the game-changing moment. 

He got a chance to give Portland the lead towards the dying seconds of the game. Lillard stepped up to the free-throw line with just 18 seconds left in the game, and the score at 118-117 in favor of Doc Rivers’ team.

Lillard surprisingly missed both of them, which also signaled the end of the game. Had he made the FTs, the pressure would have bounced back on the Clippers to make a bucket in order for them to win the game. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen. Lillard missed, and Patrick Beverley mocked him from the sidelines, which then led to an online back-and-forth between Pat Bev, Dame, and Paul George. 

Doc Rivers comments on Damian Lillard failing to convert the crucial free-throws

Doc Rivers is legendary. He now has the second-most wins by an active head coach in the NBA. Rivers was asked to comment on Lillard’s free-throw debacle in the post-match press conference. Here’s what the 58-year-old had to say:

“You know, listen, everybody misses,” Rivers stated. “I’ve seen Larry Bird miss two free throws. I was shocked because he does it. He’s a very clutch player. We just caught the one day that he does. Tiger Woods misses five-foot putts. It happens. It’s a human game, and you’ll take it any way you can get it.”

Doc has perfectly summarized the nature of the game. Moments like these are what makes us realize that these guys are humans too, right? We see them putting in an extraordinary amount of work towards their craft. But, at the end of the day, they’re not perfect and can stutter too. 

Damian Lillard is one of the best in the league at the moment. There’s no denying that. However, we need to understand that though he is a player who can make a crucial buzzer-beating 3-pointer to win the game, he can also be the one who fails to convert two free-throws that can give his team the win. 

SOURCE: Hoops & Brews – HNB Media TV – YouTube,  Bleacher Report – Instagram