Sometimes you just have to enjoy the small victories in life, and Damian Lillard seems to be no stranger to that virtue.
This weekend, Dame Dolla hopped on Anfernee Simons’ Instagram Live session to show off some of the fun he was having during a vacation with some friends and family. At one point during filming, he discovered that his team won the Summer League championship — which led to a pretty funny reaction.
Damian Lillard finding out the Blazers won the summer league title. 😂😂😂 pic.twitter.com/xZCDvtkzTN
— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) July 17, 2022
The Summer League isn’t all that important, but it does reflect the capabilities of the young and upcoming stars — and clearly, Portland has a pretty sweet stockpile of young assets.
Lillard looked happy and excited for his boys, but it’s hard not to think about when it will be his turn. Over the past decade, the Blazers have seen limited success, only reaching the Conference Finals a few times and often existing as mostly an afterthought in the Western Conference.
Next season, with Lillard, Jusuf Nurkic, and Jerami Grant, Portland hopes to avoid that trend. Regardless of how it turns out, Dame isn’t going to jump ship, and he’s not going to quit.
“I’ve always said that if I do something that goes against who I am and say I do end up winning, I know me better than any of y’all know me. So I’d be happy with it, because I don’t think anybody wouldn’t be happy being a champion, but it wouldn’t be as fulfilling to me as I would want that moment to be,” Lillard said at a press conference announcing his extension. “As long as I have an opportunity to do it, a good opportunity to [compete for a title], I’m willing to go out however. I feel proud to be that guy,” Lillard said. “Because I don’t think you earn something like this just by going out there and scoring a bunch of points.”
We will find out soon enough how good this Portland team really is. Despite struggling to contend for the past few years, they could surprise some people if their core stays healthy.
For Dame’s part, he’s doing what he does best: supporting his teammates, being a leader, and putting his best foot forward toward the future.
