6 Big Heroes from the Western Conference

It's the first round of the NBA playoffs, and the Portland Trail Blazers are trying to close out a 3-2 series lead on home court against the Houston Rockets. Coming out of a timeout down 98-96, the Blazers have just 0.9 seconds on the clock to tie the game or take the lead, lest they head on the road for a deciding Game 7.

Damian Lillard quickly pops around a staggered double-screen as the whistle blows, freeing himself from Chandler Parsons at the top of the 3-point line. Nicolas Batum hits him cleanly with a pass, but Lillard is 25-feet out, a catch-and-shoot takes at least 0.4 seconds, and Parsons has recovered to get a hand in his face.

There's little more heroic in basketball than icing a playoff series with a last-second, game-winning, degree-of-difficulty triple.

And that is why Lillard currently owns a reputation as one of the league's foremost end-of-game heroes. He headlines Six Big Heroes of the Western Conference.

Damian Lillard

The Game 6 shot will resonate with fans for years to come, but Lillard's reputation extends far beyond that solitary second.

The NBA keeps track of player statistics in the clutch, situations defined as games within five points with five minutes or fewer less to play. In those situations, Lillard ranked fifth in total points scored last season, pouring in 148 points in just 189 minutes of crunch-time action. To get there, he shot 47.3 percent from the floor and 44.2 percent on threes, even though defenses often keyed in on him with their best perimeter defender.

By true shooting percentage, which accounts for the value of threes and free throws, Lillard was more efficient in the clutch than almost anyone else, while shouldering a very heavy load.

James Harden

The table above flows nicely to Harden, who was Lillard's opponent in that fateful Game 6. While he may have come up on the short end, Harden left little doubt he's one of the league's offensive heroes, scoring 34 points with six assists and four steals in the deciding loss.

One of the league's most prolific scorers, Harden's late-game value comes from his versatility. On or off the ball, spotting up or driving, Harden can carve a defense up in any number of ways, making him essentially impossible to stop with the game on the line.

Oh yeah, and that clutch performance mentioned earlier? Harden ranked first in points per-36 minutes of crunch time with 36.8.

Goran Dragic

The Phoenix Suns shocked the NBA with a 48-34 record last season, and while they narrowly - and criminally - missed out on the chance for playoff heroics, Goran Dragic's performance throughout the season was a major driving force in the team's breakout.

The NBA's Most Improved Player, Dragic was better in 2013-14 in all 48 minutes of games, increasing his scoring average from 14.7 to 20.3  and his player efficiency rating from 17.5 to 21.4. 

It was in the final minute of games, though, where Dragic really shined. With 60 seconds or fewer to play, only John Wall and Kemba Walker hit more field goals than Dragic's 24, and nobody could touch Dragic's effectiveness.

Monta Ellis

Monta Ellis' first season in Dallas saw his raw numbers go largely unchanged from his time in Milwaukee. Beneath the surface, Ellis made strides in his efficiency, improving his 3-point stroke, his 2-point shooting percentage, and his free throw percentage.

Far more importantly than his efficacy from any one place, though, was his shot mix. Always a scorer, Ellis became hyper-aggressive off the bounce last season, creating more points on drives to the basket than any other player. Driving the lane 10.2 times per game, Ellis not only scored 7.2 points himself but created another 5.2 by distributing to teammates from there.

In crunch time, Ellis ranked 12th among qualified players in true shooting percentage thanks to a sky-high free throw rate, scored more points than all but three players, and was eighth in total assists. Monta Ellis have it all.

Klay Thompson and Steph Curry

Steph Curry rightfully gets most of the attention in Golden State, but that extra attention on Curry has allowed Klay Thompson to flourish as a late-game threat. Not only does Thompson provide stellar perimeter defense late in games, but the threat he presents from outside has a two-fold effect, opening up driving lanes for Curry and punishing teams who leave him to help.

Last season, Thompson tied Harden for second in threes in the final five minutes of games, hitting 27 of them at a 42.2 percent clip. With defensive intensity ratcheted up late, that marksmanship is elite, ranking second among the 34 players who took at least 50 late-game threes..

Curry's pretty good late himself, and it's telling that he ranked high in clutch threes and clutch assists - all 27 of Thompson's late-game threes were assisted, and Curry had a direct hand in nine of them. Curry, meanwhile, hit 25 late threes of his own.

It's little surprise, then, that the Warriors went 24-19 in games that entered clutch situations, scoring 108.7 points per-100 clutch possessions, a mark that would have ranked as the fourth-best offensive mark in the league over the course of the season.

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