Damian Lillard Calls Michael Porter Jr. 'Wrong' for Calling Out Nuggets Coaches

Portland Trail Blazers superstar guard Damian Lillard didn't agree with Denver Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr.'s decision to criticize his coaches after the Nuggets' 96-85 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers in Game 4 of their second-round playoff series Wednesday.

Porter attempted only two shots in the second half and suggested the playcalling was to blame:

"That is up to the playcalling, the coaches and whose hands they want to put the ball in. We kept going to [Nikola Jokic] and [Jamal Murray] and they are two amazing players, but I just think to beat them we need to get more players involved. We have to move the ball a little bit better. We can't be predictable against that team."

Lillard responded to the quotes on Twitter:

With the loss to L.A., Denver now trails the series 3-1 and is one loss away from elimination, meaning frustrations and emotions were likely running high for Porter.

Porter was a huge factor for Denver in the first half of Wednesday's game, scoring 15 points on 5-of-6 shooting, but he finished with that same 15 points on 5-of-8 shooting.

Meanwhile, Jokic attempted a team-high 23 shots and finished with 26 points, while Murray scored 18 points on 6-of-15 shooting.

Porter played 34 minutes off the bench, giving him more playing time than any Nuggets player besides Jokic and Murray. Porter also posted a plus-4 rating when he was on the court, which was the team-best mark.

Jokic and Murray combined for a minus-14 rating despite having the two highest scoring totals on the team.

Porter suggested after the game that he has to be more vocal when it comes to telling the coaches that more players have to touch the ball:

"I think if I am going to be out there on the floor playing a lot of minutes, I think I should voice that. I will probably talk to the coaches and tell them what I see being out there on the floor just letting them know, look, they know what we are doing. We have to swing the ball. We have a lot of players that can play basketball and score, so we have to get some more guys involved."

Porter seemed to believe that not only he needed to get more involved in the offense during the second half, but other teammates as well. Aside from Jokic, Murray and Porter, guard Gary Harris was the only other Nuggets player to score in double figures Wednesday with 10 points.

While leaning too heavily on Jokic and Murray may have cost the Nuggets in Game 4, it is easy to understand why head coach Michael Malone went that route.

During the playoffs, Murray is putting up a team-high 26.5 points with 6.5 assists and 4.8 rebounds per game, while Jokic is averaging 25.7 points, 9.2 rebounds and 5.4 assists. Porter is third on the team in scoring during the postseason with just 12.1 points per game.

Regardless of the solution, the Nuggets needs to turn things around before their possible elimination in Game 5 on Friday.