I don't think they're going to work out together. Payton basically said that there's nothing he can teach him. It's about effort and desire.
It's also about the fact that "The Glove" played in an era when hand checking was allowed while Lillard plays in the "no-touchie" era. I don't think "The Glove" would have been able to play D as effectively as he did if he had to play with the same rules as Lillard does.
There's a lot of guys that have the effort and desire, but are not great defenders. Lillard will be among them. He will never be more than average with some pretty-good moments. As long as he's an elite offensive weapon...average defense is okay with me. Terrible defense, as he showcased many times this past season, is not okay. He lost us a handful of games because other teams targeted him on defense.
Oh I agree 100%. I think that's why he said Dame needs to model himself after Beverley. It needs to be a mental advantage because you can't play as physically as was allowed when Payton was in the NBA. Of course, the refs sure let Beverley get away with a lot of physical defense.
