- Bill Walton is the only player in Portland Trail Blazers history to be named MVP and Finals MVP
- No player in Portland Trail Blazers history has ever won the Defensive Player of the Year award
- Damian Lillard is the all-time leader in points with 19,376 which is 1,336 points ahead of Clyde Drexler
On Wednesday afternoon, the news broke that Damian Lillard had been traded from the Portland Trail Blazers to the Milwaukee Bucks. While all the excitement has been centered around the prospect of seeing Lillard take the court alongside Giannis Antetokounmpo, there is another side to the story. That side is the end of an era in Portland. With 11 years dedicated to the franchise, Lillard gave his all to Portland and is among the greatest players in franchise history. Some would even say he is the greatest player to ever come out of Portland.
Using the most accurate formula we have used on such topics as the greatest center of all time or the greatest player between Kevin Durant, Larry Bird, and Kawhi Leonard, it is time to officially crown the GOAT of the Portland Trail Blazers. Any true NBA fan knows that the argument lies with three players in Portland’s History.
Of course, Damian Lillard is in that conversation along with the great Clyde Drexler and the timeless Bill Walton. While Lillard has never been to an NBA Finals, Drexler has led Portland to two appearances, and Walton has led the team to its only NBA championship. But are championships the end-all-be-all? Our formula will put that to the test. For the record, this will be based solely on each player’s time with Portland with nothing else they did in their careers coming into play.
Without any further ado, let’s crown the greatest player in Portland Trail Blazers history.
Best Stats
1. Damian Lillard – 25.2 PPG, 4.2 RPG, 6.7 APG, 1.0 SPG, 0.3 BPG (3 Points)
2. Clyde Drexler – 20.8 PPG, 6.2 RPG, 5.7 APG, 2.1 SPG, 0.7 BPG (2 Points)
3. Bill Walton – 17.1 PPG, 13.5 RPG, 4.4 APG, 1.0 SPG, 2.6 BPG (1 Point)
The race for the best stats out of these three Portland greats is a razor-thin difference in declaring a winner. Damian Lillard takes this category based on his elite scoring, shooting, and playmaking. Lillard is the only one of these three players to average at least 25.0 points per game, and to do it over 11 seasons is quite impressive from a longevity standpoint. Lillard also has the advantage in his playmaking stats averaging more assists than the other two players here as well.
Drexler was no slouch as a scorer either as well as better rebounding stats than Lillard, and only slightly fewer assists. For a time, he was the franchise’s leading scorer as well until Lillard surpassed him in recent years. Defensively, Walton has recorded the best stats by any measure in Trail Blazers history, averaging over 1.0 steals and over 2.5 blocks per game.
There is no wrong answer when it comes to selecting the player with the best stats in Portland Trail Blazers history. In this case, we decided to go with Lillard for his scoring and playmaking abilities.
Most NBA Championships
1. Bill Walton – 1 NBA Championship (3 Points)
T2. Clyde Drexler – 0 NBA Championships (2 Points)
T2. Damian Lillard – 0 NBA Championships (2 Points)
The only player of these three to actually lead a Portland team to an NBA championship was Bill Walton in 1977. Walton would lead the Trail Blazers on their playoff run with 18.2 points, 15.2 rebounds, and 3.4 blocks per game. In the series itself, Walton would be the Most Valuable Player averaging 18.5 points, 19.0 rebounds, and 3.7 blocks per game in a six-game series win over the 76ers led by Julius Erving.
Clyde Drexler had ample opportunity to win himself an NBA championship with Portland but fell short on both occasions. Drexler would lead Portland to the NBA Finals in 1990 and 1992 but fell to two of the greatest teams in NBA history, the Bad Boy Detroit Pistons, and the Michael Jordan-led Chicago Bulls in arguably their greatest form. Damian Lillard, on the other hand, never got a chance at an NBA championship, advancing to the Western Conference Finals just one time in 11 seasons in 2019.
Most MVP Awards
1. Bill Walton – 1 MVP Award (3 Points)
T2. Damian Lillard – 0 MVP Awards (2 Points)
T2. Clyde Drexler – 0 MVP Awards (2 Points)
Just as the case was for NBA championships, only one of these three players was ever named MVP as well. In 1978, Bill Walton beat out David Thompson and George Gervin for the award with 18.9 points, 13.2 rebounds, 5.0 assists, 1.0 steals, and 2.5 blocks per game on 52.2%shooting from the field, The Trail Blazers would go 58-24 on the season as they set out to defend their 1977 NBA championship.
Clyde Drexler and Damian Lillard each fell short in their pursuit of an MVP award both during their tenure with Portland as well as after. Drexler would get close as MVP runner-up in 1992 with 25.0 points, 6.6 rebounds, 6.7 assists, and 1.8 steals per game on 47.0% shooting from the field. This fell just short of Michael Jordan for that season who won his sixth straight scoring title and was one of the best defensive players in the league at the time.
As for Damian Lillard, his highest finish in any MVP race would come in 2018. Lillard would come in fourth that year behind James Harden, LeBron James, and Anthony Davis. He finished with 26.9 points and 6.6 assists per game on 43.9% shooting as the Trail Blazers finished the season with a 49-33 record.
Most Finals MVP Awards
1. Bill Walton – 1 Finals MVP Award (3 Points)
T2. Clyde Drexler – 0 Finals MVP Awards
T2. Damian Lillard – 0 Finals MVP Awards
If it seems like this has been a bit lopsided in favor of Bill Walton so far, well, that’s because it has been. Bill Walton is the only player in Portland Trail Blazers history to win a Finals MVP award as the leader of the only Portland team in franchise history to win an NBA championship. In a six-game series over the Philadelphia 76ers in 1977, Walton dominated the interior with 18.5 points, 19.0 rebounds, 5.2 assists, 1.0 steals, and 3.7 blocks per game to take the award home and cap off his greatest season in a Trail Blazers uniform.
As for Drxler and Lillard, they weren’t so lucky. Drexler would lead the Trail Blazers to two NBA Finals in 1990 and 1992 but fell victim both times to one of the greatest teams ever assembled. Drexler likely would have been Finals MVP if Portland had emerged victorious in either of those series. Drexler would finally get his championship after being traded to the Houston Rockets in 1995.
Damian Lillard still hasn’t had a chance to compete on the NBA Finals stage in his career at all. Lillard had the Trail Blazers within striking distance of an NBA Finals in the 2019 season but they would fall in overwhelming fashion to the Golden State Warriors in four games. Can Lillard finally get his championship now that he left Portland?
Most Defensive Player Of The Year Awards
T1. Bill Walton – 0 Defensive Player of The Year Awards (3 Points)
T1. Clyde Drexler – 0 Defensive Player of The Year Awards (3 Points)
T1. Damian Lillard – 0 Defensive Player of The Year Awards (3 Points)
Unfortunately for these three contestants here today, the Defensive Player of the Year award is something they never achieved during their Trail Blazers career. As a matter of fact, there has never been a member of the Portland Trail Blazers to ever capture the award in its 41-year existence.
If any player was going to win this award for Portland, it would have been Walton who was consistently among the league leaders in rebounds and blocks. It just so happens that his defensive peak with Portland came well before the award even existed. Maybe if his career was never derailed by foot injuries, we would be talking about him as the only player in franchise history to win that award as well.
Most All-NBA Team Selections
1. Damian Lillard – 7 All-NBA Team Selections (3 Points)
2. Clyde Drexler – 5 All-NBA Team Selections (2 Points)
3. Bill Walton – 2 All-NBA Team Selections (1 Point)
Damian Lillard claims his second category so far in this breakdown with seven career selections to the All-NBA Team. With competition such as Stephen Curry and Chris Paul at point guard, Lillard was still able to earn his spot with his elite play. Of his seven selections, Lillard earned one First Team selection in 2018, four Second Team selections, and two Third Team selections with Portland from 2013 through 2023.
For Clyde Drexler, his competition was fierce at guard during his career with the First Team basically being an invitational for Magic Johnson and Michael Jordan. In 1992, he earned his only selection to the First Team and shared the guard slots with Jordan. Drexler would also earn two selections to the Second Team and two selections to the Third Team.
This is where Bill Walton’s lack of longevity in a Trail Blazers uniform comes back to hurt him in our rankings. Even if Walton had been selected to an All-NBA Team all four years he was in Portland, he would have fallen short of both Lillard and Drexler. In 1977, Walton would earn an All-NBA Second Team selection and an All-NBA First Team selection in his MVP season in 1978.
Most All-Defensive Team Selections
1. Bill Walton – 2 All-Defensive Team Selections (3 Points)
T2. Clyde Drexler – 0 All-Defensive Team Selections (2 Points)
T2. Damian Lillard – 0 All-Defensive Team Selections (2 Points)
Once again, Bill Walton is the only player of our three GOAT candidates to ever earn a selection to an All-Defensive Team in his career. Both selections would come during those incredible runs in 1977 and 1978, and both would be selections to the First Team as he beat out elite big men such as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Wes Unseld.
Clyde Drexler may have never earned an All-Defensive Team selection but he was as solid as they come on that side of the ball. He averaged over 2.0 steals per game during his Trail Blazers career as well as 0.7 blocks per game and 40.5 defensive win shares. Damian Lillard has never been considered an elite defender in his career. If there were any weaknesses in his game, it would definitely be considered his ability to address the point of attack on the defensive side of the ball.
Most All-Star Selections
1. Clyde Drexler – 8 All-Star Selections (3 Points)
2. Damian Lillard – 7 All-Star Selections (2 Points)
3. Bill Walton – 2 All-Star Selections (1 Point)
When it comes to All-Star selections, longevity with the franchise has swung this category in favor of Clyde Drexler. In 12 seasons with the team from 1984 through 1995, Drexler made eight All-Star teams. This included seven straight selections from 1988 through 1994. Over that stretch, he averaged 23.6 points, 6.8 rebounds, 5.8 assists, and 2.0 steals per game on 47.8% shooting from the field.
Damian Lillard fell one selection shy of Drexler in one less season with the team overall. Lillard’s seven All-Star selections are second in team history. He earned back-to-back selections in 2014 and 2015 as well as four straight from 2018 through 2021 and another one in 2023. Walton played just four total seasons with the Trail Blazers from 1975 through 1978 and earned just two selections in the latter years. Between 1977 and 1978, Walton averaged 18.8 points, 13.8 rebounds, 1.0 steals, and 2.9 blocks per game.
Total Win Shares
1. Clyde Drexler – 108.7Win Shares (3 Points)
2. Damian Lillard – 103.1 Win Shares (2 Points)
3. Bill Walton (26.0 Win Shares (1 Point)
Clyde Drexler is the all-time leader in most advanced stats in Trail Blazers history and total win shares are no different. With 108.7 in 12 seasons with Portland, Drexler comes in just slightly ahead of Lillard. From 1987 through 1992, Drexler recorded six straight seasons with at least double-digit win shares, a sign of truly elite play from one of the elite shooting guards in NBA history.
Damian Lillard accumulated his fair share of total win shares in his Portland career as well. In 11 seasons with the team, he totaled 103.1 win shares and had five straight seasons from 2017 through 2021 with at least 10.0. In 2020, Lillard led the NBA with 10.9 offensive win shares, speaking volumes about just how good he was at his peak.
Bill Walton never stood a chance in this category with just four healthy seasons as a member of the Trail Blazers. In 1977, Walton would record his only season with 10.0 or more total win shares with 10.2. In 1978, he would record 8.4 win shares and in the totality of his career, never reached over 5.0 in a season thanks to his limited role after injury.
PER
1. Damian Lillard – 22.5 PER (3 Points)
2. Bill Walton – 22.1 PER (2 Points)
3. Clyde Drexler – 21.3 PER (1 Point)
As you can see, the race for the Portland PER leader is as close as it gets in any category on our list. Damian Lillard comes in just 0.4 points higher in PER over Walton who actually gets a boost thanks to his peak coming in Portland. Lillard never led the NBA in PER but he did have seven straight seasons with a rating of at least 20.0 which is tied for the longest streak in team history.
The player that Lillard is tied with on that streak is Drexler who recorded a PER of 20.0 or higher every season from 1988 through 1994. At his peak, Drexler’s PER reached over 24.0 in 1988 which is one of the best seasons in Trail Blazers history in regards to the PER stat. Lillard has the three best seasons with over 25.0 PER. As for Walton, his PER only dropped below 20.0 in 1976, his second season in the NBA. In his 1978 MVP season, his PER reached its highest level at 24.8.
Who Is The GOAT Of The Portland Trail Blazers?
1. Damian Lillard – 24 Points (4 Categories Won)
2. Clyde Drexler – 22 Points (3 Categories Won)
3. Bill Walton – 21 Points (5 Categories Won)
It is kind of amazing, isn’t it? Our formula weighs everything the same and with that, Damian Lillard comes out on top of the Portland GOAT discussion by a razor-thin margin. That is the entire tale of this franchise GOAT comparison, razor-thin margins declaring one player the winner in every category.
Of course, many of you will weigh the things on this list that matter the most to you a bit more than we do. For example, if accolades and championships mean the most in your rankings, then Bill Walton is the clear GOAT of the franchise. If consistency and impact on team success are your biggest indicators of a team’s GOAT, then Drexler is your choice. If you think our formula is best, then it is Lillard who is the greatest by a small amount.
I think what this has revealed to us is that no matter which way you evaluate the discussion, it is a close one and no single player is running away with the title of franchise GOAT anytime soon. Most modern fans would put Lillard on top simply due to their fascination with the three-point shot. Most old-school fans will say they love Lillard but Drexler and Walton are top-two without question. What I say is that these three have represented the Portland Trail Blazers to the best of their ability and are three of the greatest players to ever wear the Trail Blazers uniform. That is a fact that can never be disputed.Â
