Damian Lillard on Loyalty, the Blazers, and Superteams

Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard has professed his loyalty again and again over the years. In an interview with Adam Caparell of Complex, Lillard explained his loyalty and how that is opposite to his peers who are teaming up left and right:

“To leave, what did I invest all this time for just to leave, you know?” he says. “If I go play with three other stars, I don’t think that many people would doubt that I could win it. We would win it, but what is the challenge or the fun in that?”

Lillard appreciates the organization coming to him for input on roster moves, and it shows that the team values his opinion:

“Once they started bringing me in and asking for my input and all of this stuff, I realized how much my opinion counted and my involvement counted,” he says. “I realized not that people’s careers were in my hand, but how much of an impact I could have on other guys’ careers.”

The star point guard also made it clear that his loyalty is to the city of Portland, given the harsh reality that the NBA is a business and players are moved constantly:

“They could trade me next week, you know what I’m saying?” he says. “So I couldn’t say my loyalty is to an organization. It’s to the things around the organization.”

You can read more of Lillard’s interview here.