Patrick Beverley had a bit of fun at Damian Lillard’s expense on Saturday, and Lillard responded by talking some mess of his own.
The Portland Trail Blazers guard missed two crucial free throws in the final twenty seconds of their game against the LA Clippers in the Orlando bubble. Lillard had a chance to put the Blazers up one with the foul shots, but his misses instead sealed the loss for them in a crucial seeding contest.
Beverley, who did not play in the game, taunted Lillard from the sideline over the missed free throws, mockingly yelling, “Dame Time!”
“DAME TIME”
Pat Bev trolling Dame after missing two clutch free throws pic.twitter.com/apPRBhtoiq
— Complex Sports (@ComplexSports) August 8, 2020
The two were also jawing at each other earlier in the game.
Damian Lillard hits a step-back three and looks at Patrick Beverly who isn’t playing and says “I want you out here”
— NBA SKITS (@NBA_Skits) August 8, 2020
After the game, Lillard reacted to Beverley’s antics.
“I’ve sent him home before at the end of the game,” Lillard said. “Paul George got sent home by me last year in the playoffs, so they know. The reason they’re reacting like that is because of what they expect from me, which is a sign of respect, and it just shows what I’ve done at a high clip more times than not. I’m not offended by it. I think it should just tell you how much it hurt them to go through what I’ve been through in those situations previously.”
Indeed, Lillard’s two most famous clutch shots are the series-winning threes he hit against Beverley and the Houston Rockets in the 2014 playoffs and against George and the Oklahoma City Thunder in the 2019 playoffs.
While Beverley is known for getting under his opponents’ skin, he actually had high praise for Lillard recently, so there does seem to be respect there.
