Mid-Season Report Card: Blazers

Damian Lillard has been overlooked his whole career. The best clutch-time performer in the NBA is carrying his team.

It's Dame time, always

Portland is the best team in the NBA. Not really, but they are the best team considering their circumstances in the NBA. Lillard has carried them despite the losses of C.J. McCollum and Jusuf Nurkić, and they are vying for a top six seed in the West. If Rip City is this good without those two, how good are they with them?

That was a bit of a fun overstatement of Portland's play because it doesn't seem sustainable come seven game series time. We saw what happened to them against the Lakers last year. They didn't exactly improve on defense a whole lot outside of Covington, but he's not guarding AD.

As it is with many teams and their stars, it's important for us as basketball fans to enjoy the one of a kind talents in this league. I mentioned it with Steph and the Warriors, and it's no different with Lillard and the Blazers. Dame is a killer. He plays with heart, style, and obviously has unlimited range. Enjoy him while you can, but hopefully he keeps this up for years to come. If Westbrook won MVP in '17 (deservingly so), Lillard should at least be considered in '21.

Challengers against the elite

Say Portland gets the 5 or 6 seed this season. They would be matched up with what we presume would be Utah, Phoenix, or the two LA teams. It seems possible with a fully healthy roster that they could beat any of those teams besides the Lakers, and while that may sound like a lot for a small Blazers team, Lillard has that innate ability that only few possess. He can turn it on at any given moment, and the Blazers are a couple years removed from a WCF appearance.

Damian Lillard needs a ring, and he has his Trail Blazers as a contender to win their first since 1977.

Grade:

A