The Portland Trail Blazers have been a team pushed and pulled in multiple directions this season, constantly swayed by the tides of different gravitational forces: the rough, thrashings of Neil Olshey’s muddy surfs, a spiritual cleansing washed in by the promotion of Joe Cronin, and then pulled back into the riptide by a suffocating seven-game losing streak. Before the season, most fans would have spat in the face of anybody who dare suggested that the Trail Blazers trade Damian Lillard and get a head start on a seemingly inevitable rebuild. Following their latest victory drought that spanned nearly two full weeks, however, a significant portion of fans had been sucked into the whirlpool of accepting defeat.
That is, until Dame — the real Damian Lillard — finally showed up to end the Trail Blazers’ plummet and renew belief within the hearts of the fanbase. Portland has now won their last two games, and Lillard was in the peak of his powers, while leading his squad on this positive streak.
In their conquests over the Charlotte Hornets and a red-hot Memphis Grizzlies team, Damian Lillard averaged 37.5 points and 6.5 assists, scorching the nets with 55 percent from the field and 45 percent from deep marks.
Damian Lillard proved why it’s never too late for a Portland Trail Blazers squad that contains an MVP-caliber player
For a full decade now, Portland basketball has run straight through the life force of Damian Lillard, and it’s never been more true than this season.
Damian Lillard stats in wins, according to statmuse:
12 games: 24.8 points, 7.6 assists, 45 percent FG, 41.8 percent 3FG
Damian Lillard stats in losses:
13 games: 21.7 points, 7.5 assists, 35.7 percent FG, 23.3 percent 3FG
Unsurprisingly, the Trail Blazers are a horrid 1-5 in the six games Lillard has been out due to his lingering abdominal injury.
Dame is that great of a player; an alpha dog who can truly cover for so many weaknesses within a team.
Neil Olshey certainly poured some extra kerosene on the dumpster fire he had created in Portland before his long anticipated dismissal, but so long as Lillard is in MVP-form, the Trail Blazers still have hope.
Earlier in the season, it seemed like this team was in need of not one, but several major moves to become true title contenders, even with Lillard on the roster. That was an unfortunate by-product of recency bias: diarrhea-tinted glasses, crafted by Dame’s poor play through injury, that made pundits and fans alike forget just how incredible he can be at his pinnacle.
It also helps that Norman Powell has stepped up as a viable number two option, putting up 22.9 points, 3.6 rebounds, 3.4 assists, while slashing 44/39/83 in the seven games that CJ McCollum‘s been sidelined.
Suddenly, with Dame rejuvenated by the hyperbolic time chamber (read: cortisone shot) and Norman Powell excelling in his natural shooting guard slot, Interim General Manager Joe Cronin has a much shorter task in front of him.
Rather than tearing it all down and preparing for life after Damian Lillard, he can start making calls to try to find a suitable return for CJ McCollum. This would preferably be a two-way forward who can act as a serviceable third option on offense and also clamp down on the opponent’s best wing — someone like Harrison Barnes.
Trading Jusuf Nurkic should also remain a priority, but is one that can be pushed off, as finding a trade partner for the Bosnian Belly Flop might be a taller task than expected.
Of course, this is all entirely dependent on if Dame’s recent resurgence is permanent or just a gleam of hope in an otherwise dark shroud of a season. Let’s hope that Dame Time will tick for the foreseeable future.