Damian Lillard on Trail Blazers' Playoff Hopes: 'The Urgency Has to Pick Up'

Damian Lillard doesn't want his only win this season to be a three-point contest.

The Portland Trail Blazers star sent a stern message to his teammates as they prepare to battle for a playoff berth over the final quarter of the season.

"It has to happen now," Lillard said, per Jason Quick of The Athletic. "The urgency has to pick up. This is it."

The Blazers sit 28-31 and are two wins behind the New Orleans Pelicans for the final play-in spot in the Western Conference. Portland came out of the All-Star break the same way it came in, taking a double-digit loss to a playoff contender.

Lillard sat out Thursday's 133-116 loss to the Sacramento Kings for rest purposes but is expected back in the lineup Sunday against the Houston Rockets. The Blazers play just two of their next nine games at home in what will potentially be a road trip to determine the fate of their season.

"You have to verbalize it … a standard you have to have when you are speaking to your teammates to let them know: There's no other option; this is what has to happen," Lillard said. "Then you have to back it up with your energy. That's always been what it is for me. I know I'm not just saying something to say it, and I'm not saying anything I'm not going to do. And then I'm going to go out there and do what I'm saying."

Lillard has been playing MVP-caliber basketball since the calendar turned over to 2023. He heads into Sunday averaging 36.1 points, 7.1 assists and 6.0 rebounds during the momth of February, upping his average to 31.4 points per game for the season.

Portland has not made it out of the first round of the playoffs since 2019.