Blazers Could ‘Shut Down’ Damian Lillard Soon, Says NBA Insider

Time is ticking for the Portland Trail Blazers.

Sitting 2.5 games back of 10th place in the Western Conference, Portland’s chances to make the postseason are slipping.

And if the Blazers continue to slide, it could mean Damian Lillard’s season could come to a premature end.

On the latest episode of the #ThisLeague UNCUT podcast with NBA insiders Marc Stein and Chris Haynes, the latter states that the Blazers could shut down Lillard in if things don’t start changing in that timeframe.

“Dame probably has five or six more games left before Portland probably shuts him down for the season,” Haynes said. “There’s no use playing the duration of these games. So look out for that. If these next five, six games, they keep struggling, I will suspect...”

With 13 games remaining on the schedule, including tonight’s tune-up against the Boston Celtics, the Blazers have such a small margin for error in the eleventh hour of the season.

Lillard is having a career year, averaging a high in points with 32.3, including a 38-point performance Tuesday night in a loss against the New York Knicks.

Despite Dame’s success, the roster around him that was built to help the Blazers contend has not gone to plan and Portland could look to re-tool around Lillard once again this upcoming offseason.

Should the Blazers opt to shut down Lillard, the plan would be for Portland to try and achieve a high draft status. The team currently has the sixth-worst record in the NBA with a .449 winning percentage.

BE community, what do you think of a possible Lillard shut down? Would you support the move? Answer the poll and chime off in the comments section below.