Damian Lillard: I don't enjoy what NBA is becoming



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Damian Lillard: I don't enjoy what NBA is becoming

Damian Lillard says he is not a fan of the NBA trend which sees players being obsessed only with winning championships. Lillard, 32, has been one of the best guards since coming to the league in 2012. But Lillard doesn't have any championships to his name and many have a hard time understanding why the seven-time All-Star hasn't left the Portland Trail Blazers and joined a contender.

"I just don't know if I can play a long, long time because I don't enjoy what the NBA as a whole is becoming," Lillard said on The Old Man and Three podcast, per Bleacher Report. Lillard's best playoff result came in 2019, when he led the Trail Blazers to the Western Conference Finals.

Back then, the Trail Blazers were swept by the Golden State Warriors in the Conference Finals. "While I understand we play to win championships—we all want to win the championship—we can't keep acting like nothing matters.

Like the rest of this stuff, the journey, doesn't matter. We can't keep doing that," Lillard said.

Shaquille O'Neal advised the Trail Blazers to trade Lillard

Lillard has been extremely loyal to the Trail Blazers ever since he came to the NBA.

In the last few seasons, the Trail Blazers haven't had much success and they are far from being a contender at the moment. Recently, NBA legend O'Neal advised the Trail Blazers to trade Lillard to a contender and acquire draft capital and young players in exchange for their star guard.

“The organization should do him a solid and trade him to a contender. They should use him to get younger pieces because they’re never gonna win there. I would do that if I was management," O'Neal said on The Big Podcast.

At the age of 32, Lillard is still playing extremely well as he has been averaging 32.3 points so far this season.