The latest round of Lillard Time will star in all the highlights and elicit all the social media likes.

But lurking in the shadows of another Damian Lillard game-winner during yet another victory over the Los Angeles Lakers Thursday was a more important development for the Portland Trail Blazers.

Jusuf Nurkic finally looked like ... Jusuf Nurkic.

After scuffling the first two weeks of the season, Nurkic finished with 28 points, five rebounds, five assists and three steals in an important and difference-making performance in the Blazers' 113-110 win over the Lakers at the Moda Center.

"I just forget how much fun I can have out there ... when I just play my game," Nurkic said after his best outing of the season.

The Blazers' mammoth center started strong, swishing a couple jumpers and finishing a cutting layup during the game's first six minutes, and kept it up most of the night, making 12 of 20 shots in 29 minutes. He had 20 points by halftime, then hit a couple crucial baskets in the fourth quarter, when the Blazers (5-4) had to rally to escape with their 13th consecutive victory over the Lakers (3-5).

Staring at a five-point deficit with about seven minutes left, Nurkic hit a short hook on the block, followed with a rebound layup and then connected with CJ McCollum on a three-pointer that gave the Blazers' a 100-98 lead and momentum. Lillard took over down the stretch, scoring nine of the Blazers' final 11 points -- including a clutch 30-foot pull-up three over Brandon Ingram with 0.7 seconds left -- to seal the win.

Throughout it all, the body language of the old Nurkic looked back. For two weeks, he had whined and pouted more than usual as he missed far too many close-range shots, drew fouls at an alarming rate and committed turnovers in bunches. But he climbed out of his funk a bit Wednesday, recording 19 points, 11 rebounds and three blocks in an overtime loss at Utah, then released a little joy Thursday.

Nurkic said Lillard and McCollum have been urging him to loosen up and have fun and he said he thinks Utah -- where he played his first game with the Blazers after being acquired in a trade last February -- could be the origin of his second rebirth.

"I kinda feel Utah was last year where it started for me (and) it started again," Nurkic said.

Leading up to that game, the Blazers' stars had made it a point to pump up the confidence in their big man. Lillard had been texting him repeatedly. And on the team plane, as Lillard watched his own video clips, he would call to Nurkic and point out ways he could work into sets and make an easy impact. All the while, Lillard let Nurkic know he would be feeding him the ball more.

"I told him, I said, 'I'm going to come to you,'" Lillard said. "And if you go to the block, I'm going to throw you the ball, I'm going to call a few plays for you."

While Lillard talked in one ear, McCollum yakked in the other, urging Nurkic to ditch finesse plays and release his inner monster.

"I just tell him, 'Just be yourself,'" McCollum said. "That's the thing he has to understand. We don't need him to be anything besides himself. He's so finessed and so skilled, he does those little lackadaisical layups and we're looking, like, "Bro, just go dunk. Go dunk the ball.' Be Nurk against Houston, when you were angry. Or Nurk against the Denver Nuggets, when you felt that rage. I said, 'Be that all the time.'"

Nurkic wasn't quite as angry, didn't unleash his total rage, against the Lakers. But, at the very least, he took a step toward rediscovering that inner monster.

There remain plenty of warts for a Blazers team that blew an 18-point lead, showcased a defense that was more Ole than oh wow and still lacks a signature win this season.

But, on a night Nurkic looked more like himself than he has all season, it didn't matter.

"If it's one thing about Nurk, he takes ownership and he holds himself accountable," Lillard said. "He has a lot of confidence and belief in himself and he expects a lot of himself, which is what I love most about him. He was taking struggling hard. It's good to see him coming out of it."

Joe Freeman | jfreeman@oregonian.com | 503-294-5183 | @BlazerFreeman