Portland Trail Blazers: Playing “hot or cold” on the Blazers’ 2020-21 award aspirations

No. 2: Damian Lillard’s Most Valuable Player award chase —— HOT

History offers a few examples of Blazers stars producing strikingly-close finishes in Most Valuable Player award races. Clyde Drexler’s defining moment came in his No. 2 finish in 1991-92, which offered real, documented receipts on if he were superior to Michael Jordan. Even LaMarcus Aldridge drew “M-V-P” chants in his Rip City heyday, and gobbled a pair of top-10 finishes.

But it’s been quite some time since the Trail Blazers have been able to craft a case as strongly as Damian Lillard’s could be in 2020-21.

Vegas oddsmakers and NBA pundits alike have given Lillard’s standing its proper respect. CBS Sports had him as the No. 3 player on their list, and most odds have him ranked at No. 8 or No. 9.

Lillard can score in bunches, something that Most Valuable Player award winners have historically needed. But, like everything else, all of the fun the Portland Trail Blazers intend to have in 2020-21 depends on two numbers: wins and losses.

As a case in point: it’s largely inarguable that 2019-20 was the best version we’ve seen thus far of Damian Lillard. All of that garnered an eighth-place rank in voting. His best finishes — No. 4 in 2017-18 and No. 6 in 2019 — went hand-in-hand with the Blazers’ respect in the standings. Which, in a way, keeps me from being able to rank this as “hot.”

This could very well be the best supporting cast Damian Lillard has had since the early years with Aldridge. Lillard spent the better part of last season playing Oregon’s “Batman.” He’s got a capable “Robin,” and a couple of guys capable of playing that Alfred-type role.

The goal is to not need 50-point performances from Lillard to ensure one-score victories. That added help could take away some of the allure, which wouldn’t necessarily be a negative.

Dating back to Allen Iverson’s historic 2000-01 season, there have been eight point guards to win the MVP. Their teams have averaged 60.8 wins, and they’ve combined to average 25.8 points, 8.5 assists, and shot 46.8 percent from the field.

Individually, it’s within Lillard’s ballpark. The question remains: how good will the Blazers be as a group?