I want to step back a little because it would be easy to heap more praise on Lillard for all the things he is, and isn't. It's really difficult to find significant things to criticize Dame for, and when you do, you have all that he's done for the Blazers, and the person he is to heavily offset his few flaws now, what he's talking about there shouldn't just be Dame's decision. Management and coaches need to be tuned in enough to where Dame is to be able to limit Dame's playing time, if it seems like the thing to do. Dame might not be in the best frame of mind, sometimes, to make those kind of decisions also, we all realize, or at least most of us do, that Dame may carry the heaviest burden of any player in the league. To be the #1 scoring option as a PG, and also be about the only dependable manager of the offense is a heavy load on his shoulders. Portland has such a slim margin of error, the motivation to pile the minutes on Dame is too strong sometimes. And that's why Olshey's refusal to consider adding a legitimate backup PG as a rotational player irritates me a lot. I'm not talking about a guy at the level of Ronnie Price, or Tim Frazier, or Wade Baldwin. I'm talking about a Rajon Rondo or a George Hill or a TJ McConnell. Yeah, that would push against the minutes of CJ, Trent, and Jones, but a roster construction that eases the load on Dame's shoulders while at the same time insuring the offense keeps rolling when Dame sits would make the Blazers a lot better
I take that a bit like CJ is going to be a better coach after the on court career is over. Glad he speaks what needs to be said. I also like that Dame is simply playing the All Star game and coming home. Take care of personal things and get ready for the long haul because the "LONG HAUL" is coming.
"BuT mElO's LeGaCy." Thats the reason. Its not even a conspiracy theory. Olshey said it to Melo himself so Melo would come back this year. So, in the immortal words of... well, me. "Fuck olshey."
