Draymond GreenForward, Golden State Warriors

Dame's favorite moment with CJ McCollum ❤️ | #shorts

23 Feb 2022 · 1 min

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0:52

In this short, Damian Lillard reflects on the Portland Trail Blazers' early playoff run after a major roster turnover that saw players like LaMarcus Aldridge, Nicolas Batum, Wesley Matthews, and Robin Lopez depart. He recalls CJ McCollum stepping up with a promise of support, the team sneaking into the postseason as a 5‑seed, and facing the Los Angeles Clippers in the first round. Injuries to Chris Paul and Blake Griffin tied the series 2‑2, after which the Blazers won Game 5 in LA and closed out the series at home in Game 6. Lillard vividly describes the moment he walked off the court and was embraced by McCollum, marking the emotional significance of the franchise’s first playoff series victory and cementing their belief in future success.

Chapters

When we made the first move, when, you know, LA left and Batum and Wes and Rolo and all them, when that team first broke up, CJ came in and he was like, "Bro, I got you. Like, we ain't about to just be trash. It's gonna take time, but like, I'mma, I got you." I remember we like squeaked our way into the playoffs that year and we ended up being like a 5 seed. We played the Clippers in the first round. And in game, I think game 4, CP and Blake got hurt. And then we tied the series up 2-2. And then we went to LA, Game 5, won that one, was up 3-2, and then we closed them out in Game 6 at home. And I just remember, like, walking off the court, and I turned around and he was behind me, and he just hugged me. And I was like, "Bro, we just won a playoff series, bro, the first year. Like, we gonna be all right." I just remember we embraced each other, and I was like, "Bro, we finna, like, we about to get some shit done." Like, I'll never forget that.