The Price Of Loyalty
11 years, 769 games, 8 playoff appearances, 0 finals reached, and a mediocre team. Will Damian Lillard finally run from the grind?
“Damian Lillard wants to remain in Portland ”
Perhaps he may never leave...
“Damian Lillard has not had any recent communication with the Portland Trail Blazers involving the draft, free agency or his future.”
Maybe he is on his way out?
Amidst the contradicting reports from around the league and Dame’s livestreams where he presents mixed emotions and sprinkles of trolling, it becomes impossible to predict the outcome.
Dame has been the epitome of loyalty over his tenure in the NBA, and as respectable as that is, it should be brought up how he may be doing himself and the city of Portland a disservice.
A disservice to himself: By staying committed, Lillard isn’t maximizing his chances of winning a ring. As talent in the league is at an all-time high, it becomes almost impossible to carry a team to a ring.
“Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results”
By staying, he risks never winning a ring and thus needs to bite the bullet and leave.
A disservice to the city: By staying committed, he also prolongs Portland’s era of mediocracy, and thus prevents them from a complete rebuild. Due to Portland being a small market team, it is hard to assemble a team ready for contention as attracting free agents can be quite puzzling. This can thus invoke pressure on Portland, leading to them offering an appealing package to receive assets to help Dame compete. The intense packages offered by Portland can thus risk their future as a team.
When looking back at the success of players who have remained loyal towards a single team, the list gets cut relatively short.
Championships Won With A Single Team
Regardless of how rare this may be, Dame may never run from the grind. There has developed a fine line between loyalty and stubbornness pertaining to him throughout these years.
When it’s all said and done, Lillard could be responsible for the greatest championship of all time or potentially waste years of a franchise, and possibly, even his own career.
