Damian Lillard continues to amaze us NBA fans. The Portland star scored 71 points against the Rockets this week, a feat that only three other men have been able to accomplish over the last 25 years. Lillard this year is having a career scoring season, averaging 32 PPG on 65% true shooting. Unfortunately Lillard’s efforts haven’t moved the needle enough for the Blazers to even have a chance at contention as they sit outside the play-in as the 11th seed in the Western Conference. With Lillard individual play still being at a high level, the conversation of his loyalty to the Trailblazers organization remains to be a discussion in the NBA community, primarily if he’s doing it at his own expense of never winning a championship.
Loyalty is a trait that every sane human being can admire for obvious reasons. Lillard has stated on numerous occasions that his loyalty to Portland will never waver because they took a chance on him by selecting him in the draft, despite him coming from a lesser known college in Weber State. Though many admire Lillard’s goal to bring a championship to the team that drafted him, some believe he’s delusional. He recently addressed his haters in a recent interview saying, “They’ll never give me credit for what I’ve done… unless I just come out here and win a championship for Portland… They better pray I don’t win a championship for the Blazers.” It’s very clear Lillard has heard the noise from people criticizing his loyalty to the organization and taken note.
NBA fans can be very hypocritical when it comes to loyalty in the NBA, and Lillard is the perfect example. One would think his loyalty would be admired and respected by all but instead some choose to do the opposite. Meanwhile whenever star players decide to leave their respective organizations that drafted them in order to pursue championships, like LeBron James and Kevin Durant, they’re called traitors and snakes just for trying to win. These players simply can’t win with some fans no matter what decision that they make.
At the end of the day, loyalty can be a blessing and a curse for NBA players. It simply depends on what the result will be and how competent the front office around you is. For certain players like Giannis, Dirk, Steph, their loyalty paid off because their respective front offices were able to put pieces around those players which led to them being able to win championships. In the case of Damian Lillard, of course his loyalty is admirable but he has to also accept the reality of his situation. He’s 32 years old and though he’s having a career season, the clock is ticking on his ability to perform at this high of a level. Though the Trailblazers organization isn’t as incompetent as others, the team has chosen to settle for mediocrity because they know Lillard will never leave. It’s an unfortunate reality for players who choose loyalty, but not everyone’s loyalty will be rewarded in the way they want.
Great read. Love it!