Oh, nice call on the Kevin Johnson comparison! KJ and Isiah Thomas are both decent comparisons in terms of style of play, although Lillard is a better shooter than both, but hasn't proven yet to be the distributor that those two were. I'm not saying Lillard will even close to the career Isiah did, or even KJ, although KJ's career PER of 20.7 far exceeds Zeke's 18.1.
I think he plays really similar to the best PG ever....whoever that is.....seems like a realistic expectation.
His demeanor reminds me of Derrick Rose, and his slashing skills B-Roy. Not sure about his shooting yet.
The mention of KJ brings back some memories! We had some epic battles with the Suns back then. It's kind of funny to watch clips from back then. Isiah looks so underdeveloped compaired to all these guys they've got weight training now in the NBA.
Me too....I think he's going to be awesome. Seems like there are a lot of players to compare him to that are within reach though. This is a huge problem with Blazer fans these days.
I still remember when Best PG Ever made that Best Play Ever in Best Game Ever of Best Series Ever. He was amazing.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v-8c4zD40fg This one with a cameo from the Schonz http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lhkQFkv-c9M
MGB - do you remember the 92 play offs triple OT win by the Blazers (151 - 153 I think)? Now I don't usually want to see a player injured but I had that moment when KJ pulled his hamstring at the start of the 3rd OT. I remember running around my coffee table cheering when it happened... and I didn't even feel guilty later.
Actually, he does to me, too... but Damon was simply unable to finish at the rim (whether because of his size or something else) and I think Lillard might be more successful there. Damon seemed to stop penetrating altogether as he aged, and part of that must have been simple cost-benefit: he didn't get to the line much and he didn't score when he attacked the hoop, so it made more sense to shoot from the perimeter. Stoudamire and Lillard are both shoot-first, but it's fair to at least have the hope that Lillard will be a more willing passer. Finally, Stoudamire was all but useless defensively. It remains to be seen how good Lillard will be on that end, but with his size I would expect him to be better. Ed O.
Really? Damon was rookie of the year and, although his advanced stats didn't support it, a pretty highly regarded player as a 22 year-old rookie. Ed O.
When it comes to their demeanor they couldn't be any different, and to me that's important. It's why Lillard will succeed and why he won't be Damon Stoneamire.
I don't see a Damon comparison at all. Damon for most of his career lived off the mid-range jumper and was always awful in the pick and roll. Lillard's bigger, stronger, faster can use both hands... Damon was a jump shooter.