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Portland Trail Blazers: 5 bold predictions for rest of the offseason

By Austin Carroll

PORTLAND, OR - APRIL 16: Damian Lillard #0 of the Portland Trail Blazers fires up the crowd during the second half of Game Two of the Western Conference quarterfinals against the Oklahoma City Thunder during the 2019 NBA Playoffs Moda Center on April 16, 2019 in Portland, Oregon. The Blazers won 114-94. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Steve Dykes/Getty Images) (Photo by Steve Dykes/Getty Images)
PORTLAND, OR - APRIL 16: Damian Lillard #0 of the Portland Trail Blazers fires up the crowd during the second half of Game Two of the Western Conference quarterfinals against the Oklahoma City Thunder during the 2019 NBA Playoffs Moda Center on April 16, 2019 in Portland, Oregon. The Blazers won 114-94. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Steve Dykes/Getty Images) (Photo by Steve Dykes/Getty Images) /
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Damian Lillard #0 and Maurice Harkless #4 of the Portland Trail Blazers high five during Game Four of the Western Conference Finals against the Golden State Warriors (Photo by Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE via Getty Images) /

5. Dame makes big jump despite busy summer

Rap albums. Music videos. Filming movies in Hollywood. Sold out shows. Constant interviews and media appearances. It’s starting to look like Damian Lillard would still have a pretty comfortable life ahead of himself, even if he for some reason decided to never pick up a basketball again.

For that reason, it’s easy to say Dame is getting too distracted. Too caught up in the glitz and glamour of a superstar’s lifestyle. Those people wouldn’t understand the way Lillard’s brain works. Big Game Dame is a maniacal competitor and true professional. When he’s locked in and putting in work, it doesn’t mean he’s ignored the other facets of his career. It probably just means he woke up even earlier to fit both into his schedule.

Take for example the release dates of his two previous albums, The Letter O (October 21, 2016), and Confirmed (October 6, 2017). You would think spending all that time over the summer on mastering an album would have hurt his performance on the court.

You’d be wrong. In 2016-17, he set career highs in points, rebounds and field goal percentage. The following year, he posted the best offensive season of his career in categories such as true shooting percentage, Offensive Win Shares, Offensive Rating and OBPM. That was also the year he received his only All-NBA First Team nomination.

Next. What would the Blazers look like as a football team?. dark

Don’t expect Dame to slow down now. He’s a true workaholic and poised full-steam ahead, and the Portland Trail Blazers will be that much better because of it. They are lucky to have such a driven individual leading the team.