Damian Lillard Clarifies Trail Blazers' 'Mindspace' As Schedule Toughens Before All-Star Break

As the Trail Blazers' schedule toughens ahead of the All-Star break, Damian Lillard insists he and his team won't be looking forward.

Damian Lillard won't be starting the All-Star game, but it was reported earlier this month that he'd be in Atlanta to take part in the three-point contest. The Trail Blazers superstar is a shoo-in to be selected by coaches as an All-Star reserve for the Western Conference, of course.

Just because Lillard's long known exactly what he'll be doing come the All-Star break, though, hardly means he's looking forward to March 5 – a "mindspace" Portland's leader believes his teammates will share until then.

"I mean, I'm not thinking about the break. I think it's a lot of guys around the league who will be looking to that break, you know? Usually when the break is coming you start to see blowouts, you start to see some guys wavering, some teams kinda like fading a little bit, just knowing that break is coming. We're not gonna be in that type of mindspace."

Good thing for the Blazers, too.

The conveniently overlooked aspect of Portland's now-defunct six-game winning streak was the lacking quality of its opponents. Philadelphia was the only foe with a winning record beaten by the Blazers; Orlando and Cleveland might be the worst teams in the league. 

Portland's first half of six remaining games before the All-Star break are road tilts against Phoenix, the Lakers and Denver – one of its toughest stretches of the season. The next three all come at Moda Center against more manageable competition, but Charlotte, Golden State and Sacramento are all certainly capable of beating the Blazers away from home.

Lillard speaks often of the importance of Portland's focus staying in the present. Unlike more talented perennial playoff teams, his can't afford to look ahead and maintain success.

"We don't have the luxury to have our minds that far out," Lillard said of the All-Star break. "We need to be as sharp as we have been recently."

The Blazers' first test comes Monday against Chris Paul, Devin Booker and the Suns.

READ MORE: The Blame For Portland's Lack of Ball Movement Doesn't Lie With Coaching