Portland Trail Blazers Reportedly Shut Down Damian Lillard for Remainder of Season

• The Portland Trail Blazers have reportedly shut down Damian Lillard for the rest of the season
• Lillard led the team in several statistical categories, including points, assists, and steals
• The seven-time All-Star has been dealing with a calf problem all season

Another NBA season has come to a disappointing end for Damian Lillard.

According to reports, the Portland Trail Blazers plan to shut down their veteran guard for the remainder of the season.

The Blazers decided to take that course of action with the team all but eliminated from playoff contention.

It’s not hard to see why they shut down their best player for good this season.

They are 13th in the Western Conference with a paltry 32-43 record. They trail the 10th-place Oklahoma City Thunder by five games for the final spot in the play-in tournament.

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Blazers out of playoff contention

Even in a highly competitive season where nearly every Western Conference team is fighting for a playoff and play-in spot, Portland is out of it with seven games remaining on its schedule.

Lillard isn’t the one to blame for the Blazers’ poor showing. He has been superb for Portland, averaging a career-high 32.2 points per game this season, per Yahoo! Sports.

He shot 46.3% from the field, including 37.1% from beyond the arc. He also led the team in assists, averaging 7.3 dimes per game this campaign.

Lillard accomplished historic feats

There have been plenty of highlights for Lillard this season. He scored a career-high 71 points against the Houston Rockets, won the 3-Point Contest at NBA All-Star Weekend for the first time, and became Portland’s all-time leading scorer.

Lillard’s health was an issue, though, in this campaign. The seven-time All-Star missed 12 games earlier this season after picking up a calf injury during Portland’s loss to the Utah Jazz on November 19.

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Lillard also missed time back in October due to a calf strain. He has been dealing with the problem all season long. Lillard had been sidelined since March 22 because of right calf tightness.

Lillard's playoff prediction

Sports Brief previously reported on Lillard making a bold prediction regarding Portland’s playoff chances.

He felt his team could make the playoffs because of the chaos in the Western Conference.

That prediction didn’t come true with Lillard out for the season and the Blazers out of playoff contention.