Damian Lillard had the best reason for why he even attempted that long 3 that he drained

Damian Lillard was back to doing Damian Lillard stuff Thursday night as he once again powered the Trail Blazers to a must-win over the Brooklyn Nets that put Portland in the No. 8 spot in the West gives the Blazers the advantage in the play-in round against Memphis.

Dame dropped 42 on the Nets, just two nights after he scored 61 against the Mavs. He’s been absolutely unreal in the bubble and is now a win away from getting the Trail Blazers into a first-round series with LeBron James and the Lakers.

Three of Lillard’s 42 points on Thursday night came on a shot from just inside half-court in the opening minutes of the fourth quarter. He made this look so casual:

DAME FROM THE LOGO! 🤯 pic.twitter.com/3jH7yD9y6E

— NBA TV (@NBATV) August 14, 2020

After he explained why he took that shot and his explanation was so great:

“Each time I saw a look, I don’t care how far I was or if somebody was close to me. If I had a sniff, I was raising up and shooting it.” – Dame

pic.twitter.com/jEO4XpMXd5 https://t.co/HT1WiK3YEi

— Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) August 14, 2020

Man, he is the best.

Look at this run he is on:

Damian Lillard's scoring totals in the Blazers last three games:
51, 61, 42.

His 154 points are the most any player has scored in their final three games of a season.

He is also the first player in NBA history to end the regular season with 3 straight 40-point games. pic.twitter.com/SPIdWKPN2x

— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) August 14, 2020

NBA Twitter was in awe:

That man just pulled up from half court 😂😂😂 @Dame_Lillard

— Patrick Mahomes II (@PatrickMahomes) August 14, 2020

Just from the epic shots, the clutch performances, the confidence without arrogance, the ice cold candid interviews, the loyalty to the Blazers … forget what even happens the rest of his career — Damian Lillard is going to go down as absolute NBA icon.

— Royce Young (@royceyoung) August 14, 2020

What Damian Lillard did during the seeding games is something we'll remember forever. What a special run.

— Kevin O'Connor (@KevinOConnorNBA) August 14, 2020

DAMIAN LILLARD DIDN’T COME HERE TO WASTE HIS TIME 🗣

pic.twitter.com/QgKENdJzaq

— Overtime (@overtime) August 14, 2020