Joseph Norkich's grandmother died of coronation before the crucial game against Memphis, the Portland center said she was the one who helped him make the decision • And also: Carmelo Anthony complimented Damian Lillard: "The best I've ever played with him"

• Norkich with his grandmother

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  From Instagram

Just before Portland's playoff game against Memphis, in which a win was worth a playoff ticket for the Trail Blazers, Yusuf Norkich announced his grandmother's death. The Bosnian center of Portland, who decided not to return to his homeland and remain in a bubble despite the deterioration in his grandmother's condition in recent weeks, rose in the decisive game and was a key screw in his team's victory.

Norwich scored 22 points and took 21 rebounds (15 points and 17 rebounds in the first half) en route to 122: 126 over Memphis, and a ticket to the first-round series against the Los Angeles Lakers by LeBron James. After the game, the chin admitted that he did not want to play at all, but in the end decided to get on the floor, because that is what his late grandmother would have wanted him to do.

"I did not want to play, but she made me, I guess. I have already come here (to the bubble), all these decisions - to stay, to be with the team, I think she wanted me to play. I am glad we won and entered the playoffs. That's why we came."

"Alan Iverson? The best Lillard I played with"

But apart from Norkich, this game had a few other heroes. One of them was veteran Carmelo Anthony who most of the game was not at his peak but scored the three-pointer that ended the game. Melo chose at the end to congratulate Damien Lillard, who was named MVP of the Bubble Ranking Games.

"Enough for me is in the top. I have never played with someone who keeps his team on the floor with his game, and as a leader. He really cares about his teammates. What he is capable of doing is amazing. He is the best I have played with."

Anthony, who played for two years in Denver alongside Hall of Fame member Alan Iverson, explained: "Iverson was nearing the end of his career at that point (in Denver). I played with some great players, but the way Dame rises in his and the others' game is in first place."

These feelings about Lillard are not just reserved for Anthony, and the entire locker room thinks so. This is one of the reasons the club was able to overcome so many disappointments during the season to eventually find its place in the playoffs.

"If I see frustration, it could spread to the rest of the team," Lillard said. "My job is to keep everyone motivated and encouraged, so we can play the best we can. There are a lot of things you can not control during the season, but we We also control how hard we work. "