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Portland Trail Blazers Media Day: Interviews from Damian Lillard and Teammates

A summary and instant reaction to player interviews on Portland Trail Blazers Media Day.

By Dave Deckard
Craig Mitchelldyer-USA TODAY Sports

Portland Trail Blazers Media Day is underway! We'll have continuing coverage throughout the day and a summary of all the day's proceedings at its conclusion. In the meantime our friends at CSNNW have been live-tweeting some of the comments from Trail Blazers players. Here are the highlights with light analysis.

Damian Lillard

If you read our summary of the Blazers executive interviews, you'll understand when I say this scans like Lillard is the love child of General Manager Neil Olshey and Head Coach Terry Stotts. On the one hand Lillard knows how to say exactly what you want to hear. On the other hand, he seldom speaks without mentioning a fierce commitment to winning, putting expectations directly on himself in the process. Either way, feel free to sigh over the guy...again.

How did we miss this one on our Media Day Bingo chart?

Hmmmm...

I think those two may have been talking with each other.

Wesley Matthews

Wait...we already had that space filled in on the Bingo card from Lillard.

As we said in the executive interview summary, this is the elephant in the room this season. If I'm going to believe the "every year is a contract year" sentiment is genuine from anyone, though, it's Wesley Matthews.

Robin Lopez

Hooo boy. This is like your mother-in-law and your crazy auntie both coming for Thanksgiving dinner, both volunteering to help in the kitchen. It could be marvelous and it could be a disaster. Either way, somebody ought to video tape it.

That's probably the best, most sound thing we could hope to hear from anybody on the team. In fact you could almost wrap the proceedings there.

The Blazers will do well if they remember San Antonio as much as they remember Houston. The first-round victory may open up the door to greater vistas but the crushing loss will be the goad to prod them through that door.

Nicolas Batum

Welp...I guess that means he's a fan favorite no more. What's next, fanny packs?

LaMarcus Aldridge

There's that elephant again. This is the proper--and really only--approach for Aldridge though. You can bet that after today the whole organization is going to develop collective amnesia around next summer's financial matters. They'll only be reminded if they do fantastically well or fantastically poorly.

You can hear complete audio of all the Trail Blazers player interviews--including those listed above and Thomas Robinson, Steve Blake, Chris Kaman, and Dorell Wright--here.

--Dave blazersub@gmail.com / @Dave Deckard / @Blazersedge

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