Damian Lillard has – for years – maintained that he wants to stay in Portland and win a championship with the Blazers. Recent developments may have changed his point of view, and today we carefully examine his words, and the actions that have led to those words.
First round exit
No matter how loyal someone is, putting up the greatest playoff performance in history and losing the game (and series) will have any player at least thinking about leaving, especially when that defeat comes at the hands of a shorthanded 3-seed Nuggets, and not a juggernaut like the Warriors or Lakers like in past seasons.
Dame said after the series that the Blazers weren’t good enough and that change was needed. His first social media post after the series was also cryptic: “How long should I stay dedicated? How long till opportunity meet preparation?”, quoting the late great Nippsey Hussle.
Lillard didn’t ask for a trade, but his stance about committing to the Blazers changed. Jason Quick from the Athletic reported that Dame wasn’t willing to comment on whether he planned to remain in Portland. His only ever NBA coach, Terry Stotts, had just gotten fired, although Lillard probably knew it was coming. The superstar wasn’t necessarily upset yet, but he wanted to see what the franchise would do to give him the best chance of winning a championship.
With a head coaching vacancy in Portland, Lillard suggested 2 coaches he’d like to see: Jason Kidd and Chauncey Billups. That wasn’t to say that hiring anyone else would immediately drive Dame away, because Dame knew there would go more into the hiring process than an initial thought. Jason Kidd withdrew his name from consideration almost immediately, although reports suggest that Lillard’s camp and the Blazers went back-and-forth about Kidd’s past with domestic violence, and ultimately decided it wouldn’t be a good look for the franchise.
Billups
Throughout the hiring process, Dame was – logically – heavily involved in the decision making, alongside GM Neil Olshey and owner Jody Allen. 3 names were reported to get an interview: Nets assistant and former head coach Mike D’Antoni, Spurs assistant Becky Hammon and Clippers assistant Chauncey Billups. Billups was offered the job on Friday night, after the Blazers had done an investigation into his past for 2 days.
That past involves a gang rape-allegation dating from 1997, Billups’ rookie season with the Celtics, which he settled out of court in a civil case. Billups was never charged, arrested or convicted, but it was important for the Blazers to investigate the matter. The investigation must have come back clear, or at the very least inconclusive, since Billups was offered the job.
What followed was, understandably, backlash from the fanbase. Some people said they wouldn’t be able to watch the Blazers again. Some convicted Billups in their head and on Twitter. Most found a way to criticize Olshey again. However, the most important part: A pretty sizeable chunk of the fanbase directed their frustration and disappointment towards Dame.
It became a shitshow, excuse my French, and Dame clapped back. His response in particular was to a Raptors fan, but it might as well have been to a Blazer fan. The tweet said that this falls on Dame, because the organization was always going to hire who he wanted (Kidd or Billups), and that names like Hammon, as a woman, were mentioned to cool off the backlash. Dame said that those 2 names he mentioned early on in the process were just names he liked out of those he heard, and that he wasn’t aware of Billups’ (or Kidd’s) history, because he didn’t read the news when he was 7. “But if this the route y’all want to come at me… Say less” were the last words of his tweet.
Of course, the part of the Blazers fanbase that didn’t blame Dame immediately got scared of losing their franchise star. “Sorry that you’re getting hate for this” and “real fans don’t blame you” were common responses to Dame’s tweet. Dame, once again, replied: “You don’t have to be [sorry]. People gon’ keep goin til sorry don’t help”. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out what Dame meant by that.
The superstar has given his all to the city of Portland and the fanbase, for 9 years, and never even speaks about leaving. He has never been in the news for anything remotely controversial. Yet none of that mattered apparently, as some fans started to turn on him, blame him, and worst of all, question his character, which has been nothing short of upstanding. It visibly, and very understandably, upset Lillard.
After 24 hours of radio silence from Lillard – except one tweet where he correctly predicted that Gervonta “Tank” Davis would win his boxing match – Chris Haynes, who has as close a relationship with Lillard as you could hope for as a journalist, released an article in which he said that Dame might request a trade, because of the public backlash, but also because he questioned whether Portland can actually contend for championships.
With all of this going on, it’s important to note that Lillard is in full preparation for the Tokyo Olympics, as he headlines the squad looking for its 4th straight gold medal – his first. Dame has barely taken a day off after being eliminated and has been working on his conditioning non-stop. His focus, as a basketball player, still lies on the hardwood, something that a lot of people seem to have forgotten over these past few days.
The chance of Lillard not giving Billups a chance and requesting a trade are very slim. Billups was one of his preferred choices in the beginning and he reportedly has a close relationship with Dame. Dame was also – contrary to what some reports might suggest after misunderstanding Dame’s initial tweet – involved in the hiring process, so he signed off on having him come to Portland.
Even without major roster changes, it doesn’t look like he’ll be on the move. Lillard is loyal to his guys, his teammates, and he might believe that a coaching change and minor tweaks are all that’s needed. Trading away C.J. McCollum is one of the only big changes the Blazers can make, but there’s no way Dame would have a problem with C.J. ultimately not being traded away, as Lillard truly believes he can win with McCollum.
Lillard will give this team – at the very least – one more chance, no matter what the roster looks like. He’ll give Billups a real chance. He’ll give Olshey one more chance of making the right moves, no matter how big. And most of all, he’ll definitely give the fanbase a chance of proving they still rock with him. By doing all that, he’ll give himself the chance of doing what he has always said he wants to do: Win in Portland.
Courtside 