David Banks-USA TODAY Sports
It is a truth universally acknowledged that the one player you want to have the ball in the last seconds of a game is Damian Lillard of the Portland Trail Blazers, and he showed us why again in a victory over the Bulls after a buzzer-beater three. But just how did Lillard perfect the ability to do that? Jason Quick of the Athletic reports that a specific incident in Lillard’s high school basketball career not only gave him quite the chip on his shoulder, but it also cemented the point guard’s work ethic. After struggling to get minutes at St. Joseph’s, a private school, Lillard asked celebrated coach Don Lippi what he could do to get on the court.