We learned two things during Game 1 of the Warriors/Trail Blazers playoff series on Sunday afternoon. The first is that these two teams are going to score a lot of points when they take the court during the series. Golden State beat Portland 121-109 in Game 1, and we would guess that the high-scoring affair is only a sign of things to come. And the second thing is that players from both teams are going to do a lot of trash talking during the series, regardless of who ultimately ends up winning.
The players at the center of that trash talking are likely going to be Draymond Green and Damian Lillard. Lillard isn’t really known for being much of a trash talker on the court, but he got into it with Green on several occasions throughout the course of Game 1. It started during the first quarter after JaVale McGee was whistled for a foul on Lillard after blocking him, and eventually, Lillard’s teammate C.J. McCollum got involved, too. And while Green got the last laugh thanks to his team’s win, Lillard spoke after the game and said that he welcomes the opportunity to talk trash to Green and other players on the Warriors. In his mind, it can only help him and his teammates elevate their play.
"For me, it’s just going to make me raise the level of my game because I take it as a challenge," Lillard said. "I’m going to take exception to it, and I’m going to say something back. That’s what it’s going to be, as long as that’s how he’s approaching it—it’s going to be coming right back."
"I think having a guy like that on the floor, I think it raises the level of the game, because I don’t even talk trash," Lillard continued, "and he was saying so much out there that I had a whole lot to say tonight."
Lillard said he doesn’t expect things to get too out of hand, though. While he admitted that he’s going to bring a little something extra now that he knows Green is going to talk trash to him, he also said that he respects what Green does for his team.
"You’ve got to have a rough guy like him out there," Lillard said. "I think it’s necessary. I think their team depends on him to be that dog out there and to be that person."
The Warriors/Blazers playoff series might not end up being all that competitive. Lillard’s "Blazers in 6" prediction is already looking pretty unlikely. But if nothing else, it should be a fun series to watch due to all of the points and trash talking.
