Weāve seen so many legendary players retire without a ring. Charles Barkley and Allen Iverson are just two of the first that come to mind, but NBA history has seen so many great hoopers go away ringless.
Thatās why fans sometimes would rather watch superstars teaming up than wasting their primes on teams that canāt compete at the highest level. But not all players feel that way or would rather win the āeasyā way.
Damian Lillard is that kind of player. Heās constantly affirmed his committment to the Portland Trail Blazers, and recently confirmed that he has no intention whatsoever of playing for another franchise in the future.
NBA News: Damian Lillard Says He Plans To Retire With The Blazers
āYes, I do (plan on being a Blazer for life),ā Lillard said, per NBA.com. āIāve had my share of people saying āMan, you got to get out of there! Youāve got to do this, youāve got do to that.ā But Iām the type of person that Iām never going to be marching to the beat of nobody elseās drum.ā
āIām gonna always do what I feel like is in my best interest and that I really feel in my heart. Iāve said this on many different occasions, they call it āHeās being loyal!ā and āLoyalty this, loyalty thatā and Iām like, Iām naturally a loyal person but I do have a level of loyalty to the organization, but this loyalty that theyāre talking about is ultimately to who I am as a person,ā Lillard added.āIām being loyal to who I am and not getting beside myself because Iām somebody that, I believe what I believe.ā
āI think I can get it done,ā Lillard added. āNow, everybody else might say āThereās no way the Blazers will ever win. They need to do this, they need to do that.ā But thatās just not how I feel about the situation. I feel like weāll have a chance to win, I feel like that moment is going to come, I feel like that opportunity is going to come. And thatās that.ā
Thatās a leader right there, and itās not like heās having a bad time making all that money and becoming a city legend in Portland, anyway. Hopefully, heāll have the chance to lead them to the NBA Finals before the end of his prime.





