Damian Lillard agreed with a large amount contract extension for two years stayed at the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday, even though the team finished the 2021-22 season with a 27-55 record.
While Portland has a lot of work to do before it becomes a competitor again, Lillard told reporters Saturday that he wouldn’t feel good about leaving to win elsewhere.
“I always say that if I do something that goes against who I am and says I’ll win in the end, I know me better than any of you know me,” Lillard said, via ESPN. “So I’m going to be happy with it, because I don’t think anyone will be unhappy to be a champion, but it’s not going to be as fulfilling for me as I wanted that moment to be.
“I feel proud to be that guy. What’s missing from our league is character and fighting and passion and pride not just for the name behind it, but the name itself. in the foreground and how you impact the people you come in contact with.”
Lillard, who turns 32 on Friday, has spent his entire career with the Trail Blazers after he was picked by the sixth overall team in the 2012 NBA Draft. He’s a six-time All-Star with a middleweight. averaged 24.6 points, 6.6 assists and 4.2 rebounds during his career, but Portland did not make it to the NBA Finals during his time with the team.
The star guard missed more than half of the 2021-22 season because of an abdominal injury that required surgery.
