"Turned into real entertainment": Damian Lillard reckons NBA In-Season Tournament has 'grown' on everyone overtime

Damian Lillard and the Milwaukee Bucks are battling the New York Knicks for a seat in the semifinals of the NBA In-Season Tournament. Milwaukee won the East Group B, while New York made it to the knockout round as the conference’s wild-card team. The winner books a flight to Las Vegas and faces the Indiana Pacers, who pulled off an upset against the Boston Celtics on Monday.

Lillard, Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Bucks are hoping to eventually become the winners of the inaugural tournament.

Even before the start of the game, fans at Fiserv Forum already made their presence felt. The energy from mostly Bucks faithful will likely give the home team a boost. The Knicks will try to overcome that edge by just executing on the court. Tuesday night’s atmosphere has a playoff vibe, even if it’s early in December.

When asked by Inside the NBA’s Ernie Johnson regarding the players and fans’ reactions to the NBA In-Season Tournament, Damian Lillard had this to say:

"I think it's growing on everybody a little bit more...I think everybody just wanted it more and more. Now it's turned into real entertainment, real competitive basketball. We playing for something."

It was no secret that many players in the offseason thought the competition was just an added burden to an already brutal 82-game schedule. They probably weren’t aware back then of how the NBA creatively inserted In-Season Tournament games as part of the regular season’s win-loss slate. Every game, except the finals, will count in the battle for usual playoff standings.

Steadily, the tournament has grown on fans. The setup is tailor-built for upsets to happen. Unlike the normal playoffs, where a seven-game series decides a winner, the inaugural competition is decided by knockout games in the quarters, semis and finals.

Damian Lillard and the Milwaukee Bucks are the favorites, but no one can count out the New York Knicks in an elimination game.

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Damian Lillard and the Milwaukee Bucks are one of the favorites left standing

Heading into the NBA In-Season Tournament, the Boston Celtics and the Denver Nuggets were two of the top favorites to win the championship. Both continue to have the same status for the Larry O’Brien Trophy in June.

Boston, however, was sent home by the Indiana Pacers in the other quarter-final encounter. Tyrese Haliburton arguably played the best game of his career to eliminate perhaps the team many thought would win it all.

Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets didn’t even make it past the group stage. The defending champs were in the West Group B, which was won by the New Orleans Pelicans. Zion Williamson and crew have already earned a ticket to the semifinals by beating the Sacramento Kings.

Damian Lillard and the Milwaukee Bucks continue their journey. Before all is said and done, they will still face stiff competition even if they beat the New York Knicks.