Dame Time
With the news dropping yesterday that Portland and Dame are shutting it down for the rest of season as the Blazers tank their way for better odds in the lottery, the inevitable and long-standing “Dame & Loyalty” narrative will soon be back in full swing. In fact, it might have already begun as Damian Lillard — Dame Time — was recently on JJ Reddick’s (pretty insightful) podcast discussing his career and how he doesn’t like what the NBA is becoming with the current “ring culture”, among other things. I wanted to touch on a few highlights.
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Loyalty is in Dame’s blood, clearly on display at every step of his remarkable journey thus far. Going all the way back to his AAU days with the Oakland Rebels rejecting overtures from rival programs → to being lightly recruited and committing to Weber State early in the process, only to have blue-blood schools come chasing late to no avail → to then being drafted and embraced by Portland 11 years ago, he has never once wavered in his commitments, effort and dedication. Since he first put on the Blazers hat on draft night, he has brought so much joy to Rip City. As a Portland-native, I’m thankful, but even more as a fan, I tip my hat in respect. The fact that he carries himself in such an authentic, determined fashion when all the noise around him is encouraging him to take alternative routes is truly remarkable and a lost manner in today’s league and frankly in life.
More often than not, players are quick to jump ship when adversity hits, thinking a new — maybe more talented — team will bring them the success they believe they need. But I’m not so sure; as Dame perfectly elaborated on in the interview, the grass isn’t always greener on the other side and there’s more to basketball than just championships.
I would pose this question to players: Should you end up winning a championship after departing a franchise you’ve built something with, leaving solely for the purpose of getting that ring, are you really fulfilled? Or have you just temporarily silenced the noise surrounding you saying you’re missing out on what’s needed to be considered a success in today’s NBA? Dame poses this question often and I don’t think the answer is as straightforward as “ring culture” would suggest.
Of course players want to win; for most, it’s at their core and a primary reason why they want to play in the NBA. And this is not to say that Dame isn’t a competitor and doesn’t want to win. It’s the far opposite; he’s Fearless, the ultimate competitor with one of the best reputations in the NBA, striving to reach the mountaintop in the way that he wants to. And yes, the path is much harder, but I think that’s what makes it so pure; all victories are not created equal, and Dame knows that striving to reach his goals the way he wants to is far superior to and more fulfilling than hopping in a carpool lane to appease critics.
Unfortunately, it seems like this mentality is getting further lost in the shuffle of the current Era of the NBA. When players are in the hot seat, the now common outcome is being convinced of what they’re missing out on, leaving them quick to dismiss what they’ve already built. As a result, fans seem to be doing the same; the value of the journey seems to be diminishing as narratives and discussion become so fixated on whether or not you’ve held up that trophy in June.
A final question to a player who (hopefully) stumbled onto this page by mistake — do you need the collection of accomplishments to quote at the end of a career for your happiness? Or would you still be at peace without them, but knowing you did everything the way you wanted to? Every career is a story, and each player gets to decide how they want to write it. Dame seems to be taking a path less traveled. What will you do?
I clearly have no qualifications to answer. I’m not an NBA player, I’m just an amateur kinda-writer? Blogger with a different full-time job? Idk. Regardless, for the sake of the long-term prosperity of the NBA, I hope we see more players follow the path Dame has shown will still put you at the peak of the league and re-opens the eyes of fans to the beauty of an all-encompassing career.
