Has Dame finally became our franchise's best player of all time? In my opinion its still Cylde but i would like to hear your guys opinion too.
I'm too young to have seen Walton, and grew up with Clyde as my hero. I really don't think there is a dispute at this point - Lillard is a machine.
Considering determination, team leadership, clutch swish3 scoring, and how he finds a way to make others better, Dame is the best!
I have been around since the Geoff Petrie days (yes...I am old)....I have seen Walton and I have seen the Drexler years. However, there has never in Blazer history that has defined greatness, leadership and being clutch like Mr. Damian Lillard. Not to mention his loyalty to the club and the city and his willingness to take nothing and make it into something....which he has done twice. Drexler never brought home the trophy. Walton DID, but then abandoned the team. Not to mention (the obvious) that he has hit 2 series ending shots in the playoffs, and then look what he did against the Warriors tonight....same script...same story. The man is amazing....and don't even bring Roy up. Yes...he was good...but not Lillard good!!! peace out, daddylogan
It was Walton but now I'm starting to shift to Lillard. I had always ranked the best five as: 1. Walton; 2. Lucas; 3. Lillard; 4. Roy; 5. Neal; 6. Drexler. Now, I have to revise that list and put Lillard on top.
Lillard Drexler Walton had one of the best single seasons, but he's nowhere near the top. The game wasn't as skilled or athletically demanding back then. Same to a lesser degree with Drexler. You put Lillard with Porter, Ainge, Kersey, Buck, uncle Cliffy, Duckworth, they would've won multiple titles. Instead Neil has guys like Meyers Leonard and Evan Turner paid $100 million to "help" Dame.
Ranking Neal above Drexler shows how stupid your opinion is. Why dont you just list the 77 roster as the best 12 Blazers ever?
This sums it up. And I became a bandwagon fan the day they won the championship, been loyal to them ever since, even though i havent lived in the NW for over 20 years.
Nope. Walton had the most pure raw physical talent, but he forced his way out of Portland and laid waste to a potential dynasty. That removes any cache he might get from the championship.
It seems like the type of thread has been done to death, but for purposes of discussion, what constitutes 'Great'? Greatest/Highest Impact? Walton - MVP caliber for a short stretch, and won a title over a ridiculously talented 76'ers team. Greatist Athletic skills? Drexler - who was #2 to the GOAT for a good part of his career. No Blazer has come close to that level before or after. Greatest overall impact with culture, blind loyalty, stats? Dame - from a community standpoint, there has been none greater. So if you add in 'off the court', I think it's Dame. If it's strictly basketball and results, it's either Clyde (longer) or Walton (higher). Fans can argue supporting casts all day long but Walton and Drexler's court dominance made teammates better to a point where it translated into so much more playoff success. Remember, Kersey couldn't shoot, Duckworth couldn't run and had almost no jumping or shotblocking ability whatsoever, Cliff was a Playoff disaster year after year and Terry Porter (clutch) was one of the least quick PG's in the league. That is not to take away from what they did well, but it's not like Clyde had nearly the high Draft picks around him that Dame has had. Similar with Walton. Outside of Lucas, there was not a lot to rival some of the talent the Lakers or 76'ers had. And yet Walton's defense, passing, shoto-blocking and ability to score cause huge mismatches at times and created more opportunities for teammates that Dr. Jack wisely took advantage of.
I don't know about that. Walton was incredibly skilled. He could do it all and would be a really good player even in today's game. There weren't a lot of flaws in his game outside of maybe not averaging a super high points per game but that was mainly due to his unselfish style as his passing was elite. Like Roy, injuries derailed his NBA career but winning an MVP and championship in Portland does make it difficult not to factor that in.
The 'game wasn't as skilled during Walton and Drexler's time' I can understand in terms of style, rules, and especially compared to today's game, ball handling. But Walton went up against some guy named Dr. J who was incredibly skilled/talented, and Drexler's career was matched against the Greatest of All time in Jordan.
Walton didn't have as much time, but did some amazing things and won us a championship. Drexler had the time and career numbers but never got us a championship. He also never embraced the city and was kind of lazy with all his talent. Dame is the complete package. The only thing he is missing are the career numbers and championship. He should easily get the numbers but the chip will be tough. Too close of a call for me. Within year's it will be Same easily tho.