words // Brandon Richard
The future of the NBA was on display at the Rose Garden Sunday night as 2012 top pick Anthony Davis and the New Orleans Hornets visited Damian Lillard and the Portland Trail Blazers. Though Davis was pegged as the early favorite to bring home this season's Rookie of the Year Award, Portland's young point guard has been head and shoulders above his class thus far, playing with the poise of a veteran floor general.
Statistically speaking, the rookie "matchup" was pretty much a wash. Davis scored 15 points and pulled down 5 rebounds, while Lillard recorded a line of 16 points and 4 assists. However, the difference was made in the closing seconds, when Lillard put the Blazers on his back with the game tied.
After a timeout with 4.2 seconds left to play, Lillard inbounded to Luke Babbitt, who returned the ball to Lillard for a crossover, 26-foot three-pointer that caught nothing but net. Cold. Calculated. Confident. The usual.
A botched Hornets play with a few ticks left sealed the win for Portland.
As he has for most of his rookie campaign, Damian drilled his first NBA buzzer beater in the "Light Scarlet" colorway of the adidas Rose 773. The D Rose team model has been part of a few big moments this season, including Harrison Barnes' throwdown over Nikola Pekovic last month.
Check out Damian's big play in the video above and a few game shots of him playing in the "Light Scarlet" 773 below.
