6x NBA All-Star Damian Lillard is content in Portland despite a 10-year run with no championship. His situation has confused many in the NBA community, who question why a player of Dame’s caliber would subject himself to losing on a team like the Trail Blazers instead of going somewhere else where he might have a better chance of winning, and making more money for his brand.
Yet, despite the opportunities, Lillard has never asked out and clearly has no intention of doing so. Speaking on SiriusXM NBA Radio, former NBA All-Star Terry Porter defended Lillard’s loyalty and explained why the former Rookie of the Year has chosen to stay.
“I think everybody makes that decision on their own. You reach a certain level and if you reach all the individual accolades that you may have set out to accomplish. And the one thing that’s missing on that resume is a championship. That opportunity was never offered to me and I think that everybody who played that sport wants to fit in where they are the best in that sport. I think Dame maybe feels he can get it done in Portland, but I think everybody has that conversation at some point.”
"Maybe Dame feels he can get it done in Portland"
🏀 @terryporter30 tells @TermineRadio & @Jumpshot8 why Damian Lillard has chosen to stay in Portland pic.twitter.com/ZNpmGIVdKm
— SiriusXM NBA Radio (@SiriusXMNBA) December 12, 2022
Can Damian Lillard Win A Championship In Portland?
The Trail Blazers have been a pretty respectable team over the past decade or so, but they haven’t really been in a position where they were among the favorites to win the title.
Still, Lillard believes he can get it done.
“I think we can be a championship team,” Lillard said. “We’ve got a good mix of veterans with experience and young talented guys. Right now in the league, that’s who you’re seeing are the most successful teams. It’s no longer look at this super team over here. It’s who’s got the talent, who can get up and down and score, who’s fearless, who defends, who has experience and leadership? It’s all of those things that give you a shot to be one of those final teams. You’re seeing it across the league, and I think we fall into that category. We’ve got to be healthy. I’ve played a lot of games, but I’ve been in and out of the lineup with little nagging things with my calf. We haven’t gotten Gary Payton II out there yet. There are other layers to this team. We’ve got guys that are still getting up to speed. Nassir (Little) was out for a long time. He’s still trying to find his footing. I think once we put all of those things together and you can really see us, that’s when you’ll see that level up.”
No matter what the public thinks, Damian Lillard doesn’t have time to be an unbeliever. At 14-12, with a game against the Timberwolves tonight, he’s going to have to be at his best if he wants to push his Blazers toward the top of the standings.
Only time will tell how much success he can bring his team, but they have already surprised a lot of people in this early campaign.
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