Team USA Falls to France as Damian Lillard Struggles Late
Damian Lillard didn't have it going offensively on Sunday. But among the attributes that make him the most beloved player in Trail Blazers history is Lillard's willingness to do the dirty work when it matters most.
With just over six minutes remaining in the fourth quarter of Team USA's Olympic opener against France, Lillard laid out for a loose ball past halfcourt despite taking a shot to the head—providing the Americans a jolt of some much-needed inspiration entering crunch time.
Not only did Lillard's extra effort lead to a technical foul on the French bench and resulting free throw from Kevin Durant. His pointed determination also rubbed off on his teammates, spurring the Americans to a 74-67 lead with 3:41 remaining as Lillard collected himself on the bench.
Team USA was up just two when Lillard returned with 1:48 left, victimized by France on consecutive baseline out-of-bounds-plays for corner jumpers. With an obvious overall talent advantage as well as arguably the top two closers in all of basketball, though, it seemed Gregg Popovich's squad was bound to stave off the French and earn a hard-fought win in Group A.
Wrong.
Lillard had every opportunity to send Team USA to victory during the portion of the game that's become synonymous with his name. But Dame Time, apparently, is far different in Tokyo than it is in the United States.
With Team USA up one and the clock ticking towards a minute remaining, Lillard caught a kickout from Bam Adebayo on the right wing, his feet set with plenty of room to launch. Instead of letting fly on an open triple that would have given the Americans a two-possession lead, though, Lillard's completely unnecessary extra pass to Zach LaVine was picked off.
Lillard compounded his mistake on the other end of the floor less than 20 seconds later.
Guarding former Boston Celtics big man Guerschon Yabusele in secondary transition, Lillard simply watched from the left wing as Rudy Gobert tossed up a hopeless shot in the paint. Yabusele, with a free run to the rim, collected the long rebound before handing off to Evan Fournier for a go-ahead three.
Lillard's labors weren't finished.
Team USA's last gasp of a comeback was wasted when he inexplicably lost his balance after coming around a screen while preparing for a catch-and-shoot three. Lillard's trip of Fournier only made matters worse, yielding an unsportsmanlike conduct foul that gave France—up four with 17 seconds on the game clock—two free throws and the ball.
France beat Team USA 83-76, finishing a game full of runs by outscoring the Americans 16-4 in the clutch. Stymied by switching, aggressive French defense and overt physicality of the international game, Team USA's final field goal came with four minutes and 21 seconds remaining in regulation.
The Olympic opener was hardly an encouraging performance for the Americans, but it's not time to panic. The days of Team USA rolling the ball out and walking over all comers have long been over, and France would be disappointed with anything less than a medal in Tokyo. Popovich is still clearly figuring out his preferred playing rotation and go-to lineups, a process complicated by the recent additions of Jrue Holiday, by far the Americans' best player on Sunday, and Khris Middleton and Devin Booker.
Kevin Durant was plagued by foul trouble throughout the loss to France, too, limited to just 21 minutes. He and Lillard combined for just 23 points on 22 shots, with the latter committing a team-high four turnovers.
Team USA also had three quality looks from deep on the same possession after Fournier's triple put the French up two, misfiring on shots they fully expect to make.
The Americans remain gold-medal favorites despite Sunday's loss, their first in Olympic action since 2004. With international lightweights Iran and the Czech Republic next to come, they're at no risk of failing to advance out of Group A.
Still, Sunday's game was another reminder that Team USA will have to fight to win a fourth consecutive Olympics—and that Lillard is still acclimating to high-level basketball outside the NBA.