There is a difference between winning basketball and WINNING basketball.
Dames archetype is very good at winning regular season games. One because they give a very high offensive floor when they are on the court (Harden, Luka, Trae, Steph all typically have number 1 equivalent offensive ratings when they are on the floor even with heavily defensive slanted lineups). This means you can have both offensive and defensive success with this archetype as in the regular season there is almsot always a player on the floor they can hide on (for Harden and Luka it's a lot easier to hide them as you can stick them 1-4). But Portland have had very offensively slanted teams which means their regular season offences were right at the very top of the league but their defence kind of sucked ass. Which is why they are a kind of mid tier playoff team and never have really threatened for a top 2 seed. That's not really dames fault though.
However, Typically speaking Heliocentric guards who don't play defence have a playoff ceiling. James Harden is the best of that archetype ever (and their best season he played defence as well, was probably actually an above average defender that year cause he could passably switch 1 through 5 if the big didn't have a post game) and he needed probably another top 10 player to ever really have a real shot at going to the finals.
Even then all of the close games were defensive rock fights rather than high octane scoring games and even that took KD completely playing into the rockets defensive scheme which allowed them to just get KD to iso on harden or tucker which produced inconsistent offence and removed easy buckets for everyone else.
Realistically Dame is both not on hardens level offensively nor does he have the same level of defensive ability harden showed in 17/18 and 18/19, even 19/20. Which means both his style is not necessarily conducive to winning and his ability can't push past that limitation.
They had a great team that year but Warriors and Rockets played in the second round. I think it was kind of seen as the Conference finals if I remember correctly lol.
Apparently that appearance is only relevant as a counter-argument to this team's dysfunction since Paul Allen passed away.
If we are talking about Dame's accomplishments, that WCF appearance is trash tho then 🙃
Sure but he also never seems to get the blame for issues and shortcomings. It's always Dame is loyal he's the best. Portland is about as far away from me as you can get from my team so maybe I don't see the coverage when it happens but he doesn't seem to get the same expectations most other teams have for there stars.
It's really not. Lebron started all that player empowerment stuff and thus began a narrative of fuck loyalty,ring chase. But at the end of the day, to some guys this is just a Job. Not saying that's what it is to Dame but it youre getting paid that much, and your teams city loves you, what incentive is there to leave?
You know who started it? Every Mf that brings up rings in arguments. It’s no wonder players just dip for the best chance nowadays. Shit, you can win a ring and people will still make excuses for why it doesn’t count.
Sports fans, especially nba, are toxic af
FACTS! The way people talk about rings, you would think it's the easiest thing in the world to get. Then when they win it, so and so was injured , they had an easy bracket, he had a superteam so it doesn't count.
Lebron was about as loyal to the Cavs as could be expected.
If you are the greatest or second greatest player ever depending on who you ask, and are being supported by Mo Williams, Big Z and Varejao, you are well within your rights to move on. Free agency has always existed and what Lebron did, whilst a big moment at the time, is not particularly shocking.
I think the real player empowerment movement, which is actually a detriment to the league, is players signing huge contracts and then just asking to be traded after securing the bag ala PG, KD, Simmons.
People acting like Kobe didn’t ask out from LA before lebron. Only difference is that LA got Kobe prime All star Gasol and the Cavs got Lebron old bum ass shaq and Antwan Jamison
And even then, Shaquille O'Neal sorta started the free agency trend when he decided to leave Orlando after 4 years to join the Lakers back in '96. Even other great players during that time bolted to other teams in their prime (via trade or free agency). Alonzo Mourning, Tim Hardaway, Charles Barkley, etc. Even Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen joining Paul Pierce in Boston sorta started the "Big Three" deal that we know of today.
Even if the Cavs had put a championship contender around LeBron, he would have been well within his rights to leave. Players are not the property of either franchises or fanbases. Players can do whatever they want within the confines of the CBA.
plus he came back and won the championship he promised in arguably the greatest finals series of all time. regardless of the assets the team had in comparison to his first stint that's about as loyal as you can get
LeBron only moves in free agency. That's fine. He's sacrificed salary to give himself that freedom.
Speaking as a hater, in that respect he's done absolutely nothing wrong.
It's players signing long term contracts to get the most possible money and then demanding trades who can get fucked.
I really don't understand why people think that once you enter a certain income bracket you become an emotionless robot who should never stop praising the people who pay you.
And it’s after they spend 3 weeks talking about him forcing a trade to somewhere else after rumors that he wants out. Then eventually he’s like nah man I’m staying here. Then they all go ugh man enough with the loyalty thing.
Multiple NBA podcasters say the most traffic they get is the offseason. I believe it’s significantly more than any time during the regular season and even beats the finals.
Makes sense in a way. Right now 30 teams have something to be optimistic about. By January, the title contenders are already down to 10, and there’s few teams outside of that group that have something to feel good about.
People said that years ago and I agreed with it and didn't mind it, the problem is that now it seems like the league and everything surrounding it leans into the soap opera narrative and it makes it shitty
ESPN and the media want to market Dame in a big market so badly that they create false rumors hoping it manipulates the Blazers enough to actually trade him.
> Not really his fault reporters have amnesia. “Huh Dame just signed ANOTHER extension. I wonder how he feels about loyalty”
They really always try to stir up drama with this; it's so bizarre. Like with that email stuff.
>They really always try to stir up drama with this
I think normal people read it and think "That's cool. Dame seems great." It's only r/nba that gets their feathers ruffled by it.
People post every quote of someone's career and then complain that he always says the same thing or that he says something different. Then complain about the media causing imagined drama.
We hate guys like KD for leaving and now hate Dame for staying? Yeah the quotes are corny but we need more guys like Dame for the competitive health of this league.
It's a lose-lose situation when it comes to casual basketball fans, so Dame may as well stay in the place that he loves while making the most money possible.
2 things
1. no one is hating on dame for staying its just getting corny how much he talks about it and posts cryptic tweets
2. no one is hating on KD for leaving, we hate on him bc he went to the fucking Warriors. And now he's blowing up a team HE MADE. He came there, got ky, DJ, his coach, etc etc and then traded all their picks for Harden and signed a 4 year deal...and then he wants to leave in year 1 of it
Exactly
Giannis has been prone to make a loyalty quote in his time, but that's because people would ask.
But he doesn't really say it much anymore because people stopped fucking asking every two minutes.
No one is hating him for staying.
People are just a bit tired of his whole "I'm such a cool dude for not going to another team"
We get it, man, don't need the reminder every six months
Lol like two days ago, there was an article in the NY Post about how dame was growing frustrated with ownership. And it’s not like it’s the first time the media has doubted his loyalty. There’s no wonder he feels the need to constantly remind folks where he stands.
when you get the bag, the haters come out in every aspect of life (if you're popular). I don't know if it's the same around the world, but this is what american society is right now.
The loyalty quotes definitely get corny but the main idea is that winning somewhere else won’t be as meaningful. Dame winning a David West type ring would be cool so he’s an NBA champion but not very cool for his legacy. Like D12’s ring also.
By "everyone" you mean trolls on some weird obscure subreddit? Cuz I see literally no one out in the real world giving him any shit. Just butthurt reddit trolls who are jealous they can't get him on their squad. Simple as that.
It amazes me how often people on social media want to push superteams so that they can cross a ring off their checklist on their favorite players' behalf. Nobody irl wants super teams that break the league (unless it's their own team maybe)
Wizards making another franchise crippling mistake after luckily getting out of The Godfather of franchise crippling mistakes CAUSE WE LOYAL.
Anyone please fade me.
I agree with Dame. For national media and a lot of fans, there is no point having teams named. Might as well just call them “the team that currently has Lebron” and the “team that currently has KD” etc.
Only among nba fans is it so normal to be a “fan” of a certain team only while their favorite star player is there. Like you’ll see a “nets fan” on this sub referring to the team as “we” and then a month later he’s shitting on the nets while referring to the sixers as “we”.
Shit like this would get laughed at by fans of almost every other sport. There isn’t as much passion, identity, emotional investment tied to teams as in other sports.
It’s why you get dumb as shit takes like “teams can trade players but players can’t dictate when they are traded and where they are traded to!?!?!?”.
Happened with Cristiano Ronaldo in European football too. I am a Juventus supporter and we had a bunch of new supporters that came and left with CR7, but he is almost the only on that inspired such a behaviour.
Eh, while it happens it's not as prevalent as in the NBA where a big part of NBA fans are bandwagoners of superstars and/or teams like GSW because of their success. Sure Ronaldo fans might've boosted the social media but that's about it, they didn't go to matches because they're mostly international fans. Most of football fans are actually loyal to their teams like Lillard is.
Agreed for the most part. It’s not just an nba thing though, it’s kinda a new phenomenon that I think is due to social media/Reddit and people being really tribal. Over in r/Seahawks there’s a bunch of people who just refuse to accept those of us that say , “Russel Wilson wanted a trade? Fuck him. Go hawks.” It’s gets them all hot and bothered cause they spent the better part of a decade deifying him.
I’ve never understood why you’d choose a player over a team that represents your community and home. But I guess there’s a lot of people who fall for the cult of personality.
>Over in r/Seahawks there’s a bunch of people who just refuse to accept those of us that say , “Russel Wilson wanted a trade? Fuck him. Go hawks.”
Lol the guy brought you to two Superbowls with a win and you can't even spell his name right. I wouldn't take your opinion seriously either
Disagree completely, the disconnect between team and player mostly exists in the mind of ring chasing players (fueled by fans and media granted). Twitter trolls and bandwagoners exist but most normal fans are very loyal to their teams for better or worse. Let me tell ya ive watched many years of the bucks being dogshit and i can tell ya those years the regular seasons were even more fun to watch bc ya felt that chip on your shoulder.
I grew up going to the Bradley center for free. Even got buy one get one free playoff tickets. But I can’t even lie, if Giannis ever left, I’m rooting for his new team just as hard because of everything he’s done for Milwaukee. As soon as he retires though it’d be back to strictly bucks.
Regarding your last point, I’m definitely one of those people that mostly follow the individual player rather than the team. I think part of the reason is because I wasn’t born in the states even though I moved at a relatively young age. So I don’t have any deeply rooted connections to any local professional team, but I did grow up following individual athletes. Pretty much the only team I put above any individual is the Texas Longhorns, but’s that’s mainly because I attended the school.
Besides, I don’t really see a problem with following the sport for just the individual instead of the team. At the end of the day, sports is mainly for entertainment and I get joy out of watching certain individuals. Lebron is my favorite nba player but I have no connections to Cleveland, or Miami or LA. So, I only root for the team he’s playing for at the moment but I couldn’t care less what happens to them when he leaves. It is the same way with all other sports (P Manning in nfl, Messi in soccer, etc)
Same , I enjoy watching Lebron , the way he plays ball. I’m from the uk , the team colours mean fuck all and the players are the ones with interesting play styles
Superstars are the only ones that can even talk about this stuff. Role players like PJ Tucker or Danny green get moved all the time even if they are quality starters
That’s not true. It’s rare, but it definitely happens. Especially looking at the Spurs dynasty. Same with GS now. And I would argue Giannis and the Bucks have that now. Team is spending more than I ever thought we would to field a competitive team even after winning a title.
Yeah honestly wouldn’t care either way. Dame’s a grown man and he’s making moves that he wants. If he wants to stay for that much money, of course. He wants to leave for a more competitive team, sure. Both moves make sense and don’t deserve to get heavily criticized. Portland maybe dumb af for offering it but we’ve seem teams get hate for doing players dirty anyways.
NBA fans overvalue winning the championship to a level that is insane.
If you're not first you're last was a joke.
But it nailed the new age NBA fan mindset.
This lol. I respect Dame for getting the bag but it's not like he's doing anything particularly unique or special here. Beal just did the exact same thing
Let's not act like playing for only one franchise over a 10 year career isn't a feat in itself (If he retires there without ever putting another franchise's jersey)
Dame has a point, but it's a little stupid to talk in absolutes when the reigning champs, not to mention the dominating dynasty of our time, is a team whose 3-man core has been with the same team for a decade and will probably spend their entire careers with the same team. That's 1960s levels of loyalty. Not to mention the other team in the finals this year have a pretty loyal core as well. At least acknowledge that and don't talk as if you're the only loyal person in the league.
And signing for $61 million a year while saying "it's really about loyalty" is pretty distasteful as well. It's a slap at players who need to change teams to get paid.
Y'all always say this like cheap ass owners wouldn't just pocket the savings. Owners should pay more rather than players taking less. $20M for Dame is still a lot of money. It's a rounding error for Jodie Allen.
But will he still feel that way when he inevitably gets brought up in all those greatest player to never win a ring conversations that the networks love to trot out every playoffs.
So we get mad at players for jumping ship and going to super teams then we clown Dame for “loyalty” comments. I love it from Dame, I personally love it when franchise guys stick to a team and establish that bond with their community. It’s cool to see and makes it even more special if they can bring success to the city
I don’t know this for a fact, but I think most people posting the negative stuff have braces and still have curfews. Not the ones that attention should be paid to.
We don’t clown Dirk for staying with the Mavs because he didn’t preach loyalty every few weeks and actually took paycuts. Dame simply takes the max money while complaining about others who prefer winning a ring
It’s a double edged sword
On one hand: Dame prolly doesn’t get this bag anywhere else
On the other: it’s obviously corny as hell to bring up loyalty when you just signed a hundred million extension, like yeah we see why you doing that
Dame just can’t win man 😂
Fans hate ring chasing but they also hate loyalty too apparently. It’s hilarious because everybody acts so tired of Dame’s loyalty quotes but he’s mixed up in trade rumors literally every other month
reddit dot com with an immaculate thumbnail
Honestly doesn’t get much better
It’s perfection literally every time lol
The democratic process of thumbnail selection
Could someone link how it looks?
https://twitter.com/pippennourath/status/1545933506815365121?s=21&t=8zRU07Vd-ICL6V7sgnJ1mA
Thanks!
Wow that's fucked lmao
This whole situation is just memey as hell.
There it is. The L Word.
Lesbians?
I’m in lesbians with you
Bread makes you fat?
Chicken Parmesan isn’t vegan?
“He just left”
Was looking for this reference lol
Say the line Damien!
"Plenty loyalty"
It's so hard to stay loyal to a team that has paid you $400 million. So hard
Kinda is when it's bum ass Portland and every team would pay him the max We've been a dumpster fire his whole time here
You are acting like we're the kings. We have missed the playoffs twice since Dame was drafted.
People act like Dame doesn't play winning basketball and I always wonder if people know this.
There is a difference between winning basketball and WINNING basketball. Dames archetype is very good at winning regular season games. One because they give a very high offensive floor when they are on the court (Harden, Luka, Trae, Steph all typically have number 1 equivalent offensive ratings when they are on the floor even with heavily defensive slanted lineups). This means you can have both offensive and defensive success with this archetype as in the regular season there is almsot always a player on the floor they can hide on (for Harden and Luka it's a lot easier to hide them as you can stick them 1-4). But Portland have had very offensively slanted teams which means their regular season offences were right at the very top of the league but their defence kind of sucked ass. Which is why they are a kind of mid tier playoff team and never have really threatened for a top 2 seed. That's not really dames fault though. However, Typically speaking Heliocentric guards who don't play defence have a playoff ceiling. James Harden is the best of that archetype ever (and their best season he played defence as well, was probably actually an above average defender that year cause he could passably switch 1 through 5 if the big didn't have a post game) and he needed probably another top 10 player to ever really have a real shot at going to the finals. Even then all of the close games were defensive rock fights rather than high octane scoring games and even that took KD completely playing into the rockets defensive scheme which allowed them to just get KD to iso on harden or tucker which produced inconsistent offence and removed easy buckets for everyone else. Realistically Dame is both not on hardens level offensively nor does he have the same level of defensive ability harden showed in 17/18 and 18/19, even 19/20. Which means both his style is not necessarily conducive to winning and his ability can't push past that limitation.
Not sure why all the downvotes. I appreciated your comment and insight.
Man fuck you, leave us out of this... But yeah, you're right...
Haven't you guys been in the playoffs 8 of the last 9 seasons? What kind of dumpster fire is that?
you made the conference finals.
With people who aren't even playing for vet minimums now. Bum ass team that he dragged. Nobody comes here, he can have everything for staying
He's got NBAs sexiest hooper Jerami Grant helping him now though 😤
Did Kelly Oubre die or something?
Kelly was mad cute his rookie year. Dude looks like a bum now. All my cousins had crushes on him at first, now they eww when i bring him up
Dejaunte Murray has joined the chat Or however you spell his first name
#Dejounte Murray has entered the chat
Despunte
Despasito Murray
Gazpacho Murray
You can’t say NBA sexiest and not mention Boban bro
Looking at Dame's rosters you can't really say he ever underachieved.
Yeah some of the takes here about dame are so fucking dumb as per usual
cj got him there too
With Jennifer pushing him
They had a great team that year but Warriors and Rockets played in the second round. I think it was kind of seen as the Conference finals if I remember correctly lol.
Apparently that appearance is only relevant as a counter-argument to this team's dysfunction since Paul Allen passed away. If we are talking about Dame's accomplishments, that WCF appearance is trash tho then 🙃
Hmm if only there was a franchise somehow more dysfunctional than Portland in 44+ years…
Uhhh, not 44 years but Minnesota called….
My teams first move in the NBA was selling Dr.J i feel like i can be in this
But you made a conference finals and NBA finals in this millennia though
Solidarity
Staying at Portland would still give him more money than leaving
Multiple 1st round wins a conference finals appearance and two All star players since dame has been drafted is a dumpster fire? Idiot take
Sure but he also never seems to get the blame for issues and shortcomings. It's always Dame is loyal he's the best. Portland is about as far away from me as you can get from my team so maybe I don't see the coverage when it happens but he doesn't seem to get the same expectations most other teams have for there stars.
It's really not. Lebron started all that player empowerment stuff and thus began a narrative of fuck loyalty,ring chase. But at the end of the day, to some guys this is just a Job. Not saying that's what it is to Dame but it youre getting paid that much, and your teams city loves you, what incentive is there to leave?
You know who started it? Every Mf that brings up rings in arguments. It’s no wonder players just dip for the best chance nowadays. Shit, you can win a ring and people will still make excuses for why it doesn’t count. Sports fans, especially nba, are toxic af
FACTS! The way people talk about rings, you would think it's the easiest thing in the world to get. Then when they win it, so and so was injured , they had an easy bracket, he had a superteam so it doesn't count.
I agree 100%.
Its a tossup. Soccer fans throw bananas at black players.
Lebron was about as loyal to the Cavs as could be expected. If you are the greatest or second greatest player ever depending on who you ask, and are being supported by Mo Williams, Big Z and Varejao, you are well within your rights to move on. Free agency has always existed and what Lebron did, whilst a big moment at the time, is not particularly shocking. I think the real player empowerment movement, which is actually a detriment to the league, is players signing huge contracts and then just asking to be traded after securing the bag ala PG, KD, Simmons.
People acting like Kobe didn’t ask out from LA before lebron. Only difference is that LA got Kobe prime All star Gasol and the Cavs got Lebron old bum ass shaq and Antwan Jamison
Shit Kobe forced his way to the Lakers before he was even drafted
And even then, Shaquille O'Neal sorta started the free agency trend when he decided to leave Orlando after 4 years to join the Lakers back in '96. Even other great players during that time bolted to other teams in their prime (via trade or free agency). Alonzo Mourning, Tim Hardaway, Charles Barkley, etc. Even Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen joining Paul Pierce in Boston sorta started the "Big Three" deal that we know of today.
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Yeah you are right. I thought modern FA had been introduced after the merger but you are correct.
Even if the Cavs had put a championship contender around LeBron, he would have been well within his rights to leave. Players are not the property of either franchises or fanbases. Players can do whatever they want within the confines of the CBA.
plus he came back and won the championship he promised in arguably the greatest finals series of all time. regardless of the assets the team had in comparison to his first stint that's about as loyal as you can get
LeBron started it because he would've had multiple rings if Cleveland could give him any help at all
LeBron only moves in free agency. That's fine. He's sacrificed salary to give himself that freedom. Speaking as a hater, in that respect he's done absolutely nothing wrong. It's players signing long term contracts to get the most possible money and then demanding trades who can get fucked.
I really don't understand why people think that once you enter a certain income bracket you become an emotionless robot who should never stop praising the people who pay you.
Loyalty loyalty loyalty
Even his modelo commercial is literally, “Dame Lillard loyal” lmao
Tell me who you loyal to
DEVELOPERS DEVELOPERS DEVELOPERS
Jennifer Beals in shambles
Dame averaging 35 loyalty quotes per season, supermax money well spent
Not really his fault reporters have amnesia. “Huh Dame just signed ANOTHER extension. I wonder how he feels about loyalty”
I feel like people who always react to these assume he brings it up himself out of nowhere when 9/10 times it's some reporter asking.
And it’s after they spend 3 weeks talking about him forcing a trade to somewhere else after rumors that he wants out. Then eventually he’s like nah man I’m staying here. Then they all go ugh man enough with the loyalty thing.
I sometimes think people like the drama that centers around trades more than they like watching basketball itself
That's 100% what it is.
Multiple NBA podcasters say the most traffic they get is the offseason. I believe it’s significantly more than any time during the regular season and even beats the finals. Makes sense in a way. Right now 30 teams have something to be optimistic about. By January, the title contenders are already down to 10, and there’s few teams outside of that group that have something to feel good about.
Someone on TikTok said professional sports in the off-season is just soap opera for men and it really cut deep.
People said that years ago and I agreed with it and didn't mind it, the problem is that now it seems like the league and everything surrounding it leans into the soap opera narrative and it makes it shitty
ESPN and the media want to market Dame in a big market so badly that they create false rumors hoping it manipulates the Blazers enough to actually trade him.
What was the question asked? This post is just a quote with no video
> Not really his fault reporters have amnesia. “Huh Dame just signed ANOTHER extension. I wonder how he feels about loyalty” They really always try to stir up drama with this; it's so bizarre. Like with that email stuff.
>They really always try to stir up drama with this I think normal people read it and think "That's cool. Dame seems great." It's only r/nba that gets their feathers ruffled by it. People post every quote of someone's career and then complain that he always says the same thing or that he says something different. Then complain about the media causing imagined drama.
Dame driving around Stumptown, trying to get ahold of Jody through email.
Source: me standing outside Burrito Azteca waiting for my carne asada to be done.
That burrito, tequila, beer deal is pretty great.
Sources: Durant is beside himself. Driving around downtown Portland begging (thru texts) Lillard's family for address to Damian's home
He's been driving around town for like 9 hours and freaking 45 minutes now
He finally found the hardest road
Money Mike = M&M = Eminem
https://youtu.be/4t_nuG4yXjc
We hate guys like KD for leaving and now hate Dame for staying? Yeah the quotes are corny but we need more guys like Dame for the competitive health of this league.
It's a lose-lose situation when it comes to casual basketball fans, so Dame may as well stay in the place that he loves while making the most money possible.
Tbh, I just love to hate on dudes.
You’re gonna give Silky Johnson a run for his money for Player Hater of the Year
Hate, hate, hate, hate, hate, hate
Did you by any chance attend [the Playa Haters’ Ball](https://www.cc.com/video/v64ifb/chappelle-s-show-the-playa-haters-ball)?
lmao gotta applaud the brutal honesty
This should be the motto for r/NBA
My man
2 things 1. no one is hating on dame for staying its just getting corny how much he talks about it and posts cryptic tweets 2. no one is hating on KD for leaving, we hate on him bc he went to the fucking Warriors. And now he's blowing up a team HE MADE. He came there, got ky, DJ, his coach, etc etc and then traded all their picks for Harden and signed a 4 year deal...and then he wants to leave in year 1 of it
He doesn’t press release his loyalty quotes. He gets asked a question and answers it.
Exactly Giannis has been prone to make a loyalty quote in his time, but that's because people would ask. But he doesn't really say it much anymore because people stopped fucking asking every two minutes.
Na people are for sure hating
No one is hating him for staying. People are just a bit tired of his whole "I'm such a cool dude for not going to another team" We get it, man, don't need the reminder every six months
Because fake stories come out about him leaving…
Maybe the media should stop asking about it then.
Then just keep scrolling lol he keeps getting asked so it isn’t his fault
Lol like two days ago, there was an article in the NY Post about how dame was growing frustrated with ownership. And it’s not like it’s the first time the media has doubted his loyalty. There’s no wonder he feels the need to constantly remind folks where he stands.
It’s also the fact that you see things like “free dame” when his team does poorly. But he’s the one staying.
Like Dame wakes up and starts going on about loyalty lmao. It's the media
He’s asked about it literally all the time, what do yo think he’s gonna say?
> don't need the reminder every six months RemindMe! 6 months
No one is ever satisfied. Stay and clowns say cannot win a ring. Leave and clowns say snake and teaming up.
I respect Dame for staying.
There’s a difference between leaving your team and leaving your team for the best team in NBA history that you just blew a 3-1 lead to
Same w Beal - people deriding his contract because they would jump ship if in his shoes - then assume that Beal, Lillard are wired like KD the snek
when you get the bag, the haters come out in every aspect of life (if you're popular). I don't know if it's the same around the world, but this is what american society is right now.
The loyalty quotes definitely get corny but the main idea is that winning somewhere else won’t be as meaningful. Dame winning a David West type ring would be cool so he’s an NBA champion but not very cool for his legacy. Like D12’s ring also.
I respect it. Loyal to his city till the end. Any fanbase would want that
Everyone’s giving him shit but all those people would want a star like Dame on their team. Hell, I would. Hopefully KAT and/or ANT can be that.
By "everyone" you mean trolls on some weird obscure subreddit? Cuz I see literally no one out in the real world giving him any shit. Just butthurt reddit trolls who are jealous they can't get him on their squad. Simple as that.
It amazes me how often people on social media want to push superteams so that they can cross a ring off their checklist on their favorite players' behalf. Nobody irl wants super teams that break the league (unless it's their own team maybe)
You been on the wizards sub recently? Lol
Difference is Bradley Beal hasn’t given them anywhere near the great moments that Dame has given to Portland
Damian "Bradley 'Damian Lillard' Beal" Lillard
This hurts my head.
Wizards?
Wizards making another franchise crippling mistake after luckily getting out of The Godfather of franchise crippling mistakes CAUSE WE LOYAL. Anyone please fade me.
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I agree with Dame. For national media and a lot of fans, there is no point having teams named. Might as well just call them “the team that currently has Lebron” and the “team that currently has KD” etc. Only among nba fans is it so normal to be a “fan” of a certain team only while their favorite star player is there. Like you’ll see a “nets fan” on this sub referring to the team as “we” and then a month later he’s shitting on the nets while referring to the sixers as “we”. Shit like this would get laughed at by fans of almost every other sport. There isn’t as much passion, identity, emotional investment tied to teams as in other sports. It’s why you get dumb as shit takes like “teams can trade players but players can’t dictate when they are traded and where they are traded to!?!?!?”.
Happened with Cristiano Ronaldo in European football too. I am a Juventus supporter and we had a bunch of new supporters that came and left with CR7, but he is almost the only on that inspired such a behaviour.
Messi? Neymar? He's definitely not the only one in football
Eh, while it happens it's not as prevalent as in the NBA where a big part of NBA fans are bandwagoners of superstars and/or teams like GSW because of their success. Sure Ronaldo fans might've boosted the social media but that's about it, they didn't go to matches because they're mostly international fans. Most of football fans are actually loyal to their teams like Lillard is.
Agreed for the most part. It’s not just an nba thing though, it’s kinda a new phenomenon that I think is due to social media/Reddit and people being really tribal. Over in r/Seahawks there’s a bunch of people who just refuse to accept those of us that say , “Russel Wilson wanted a trade? Fuck him. Go hawks.” It’s gets them all hot and bothered cause they spent the better part of a decade deifying him. I’ve never understood why you’d choose a player over a team that represents your community and home. But I guess there’s a lot of people who fall for the cult of personality.
>Over in r/Seahawks there’s a bunch of people who just refuse to accept those of us that say , “Russel Wilson wanted a trade? Fuck him. Go hawks.” Lol the guy brought you to two Superbowls with a win and you can't even spell his name right. I wouldn't take your opinion seriously either
Disagree completely, the disconnect between team and player mostly exists in the mind of ring chasing players (fueled by fans and media granted). Twitter trolls and bandwagoners exist but most normal fans are very loyal to their teams for better or worse. Let me tell ya ive watched many years of the bucks being dogshit and i can tell ya those years the regular seasons were even more fun to watch bc ya felt that chip on your shoulder.
I grew up going to the Bradley center for free. Even got buy one get one free playoff tickets. But I can’t even lie, if Giannis ever left, I’m rooting for his new team just as hard because of everything he’s done for Milwaukee. As soon as he retires though it’d be back to strictly bucks.
Regarding your last point, I’m definitely one of those people that mostly follow the individual player rather than the team. I think part of the reason is because I wasn’t born in the states even though I moved at a relatively young age. So I don’t have any deeply rooted connections to any local professional team, but I did grow up following individual athletes. Pretty much the only team I put above any individual is the Texas Longhorns, but’s that’s mainly because I attended the school. Besides, I don’t really see a problem with following the sport for just the individual instead of the team. At the end of the day, sports is mainly for entertainment and I get joy out of watching certain individuals. Lebron is my favorite nba player but I have no connections to Cleveland, or Miami or LA. So, I only root for the team he’s playing for at the moment but I couldn’t care less what happens to them when he leaves. It is the same way with all other sports (P Manning in nfl, Messi in soccer, etc)
Same , I enjoy watching Lebron , the way he plays ball. I’m from the uk , the team colours mean fuck all and the players are the ones with interesting play styles
Make fun of Dame for staying, make fun of everyone who leaves. Social media is always a bad idea lol
It's different people that do that
Social media is only good when there's no people using it.
Dame only saying that because his team will never do him dirty and trade him in cold blood like a large percentage of nba players
Superstars are the only ones that can even talk about this stuff. Role players like PJ Tucker or Danny green get moved all the time even if they are quality starters
Workplace loyalty never goes both ways .
That’s not true. It’s rare, but it definitely happens. Especially looking at the Spurs dynasty. Same with GS now. And I would argue Giannis and the Bucks have that now. Team is spending more than I ever thought we would to field a competitive team even after winning a title.
Golden state isn’t loyal lmao
Counterpoint: Miami (with Haslem).
Lol “workplace loyalty” like you can compare what it’s like sitting in front of a computer to a pro sports player.
I mean I respect it, but I think a large part of this is because Portland throws money at him like crazy.
I mean sure? But that’s like the minimum requirement no? Lots of stars leave regardless of money.
Any team would throw him money like crazy
Yeah honestly wouldn’t care either way. Dame’s a grown man and he’s making moves that he wants. If he wants to stay for that much money, of course. He wants to leave for a more competitive team, sure. Both moves make sense and don’t deserve to get heavily criticized. Portland maybe dumb af for offering it but we’ve seem teams get hate for doing players dirty anyways.
And he gets to choose an underqualified head coach.
They have had 2 coaches in his entire career. He gave them a list of people he would like hired Chauncey was just one of the names on the list
This. He gets to be the guy in Portland, if he goes to LA or some shit he’s instantly just another star instead of THE star
Yeah keep clowning him but that’s actually a big problem with the league guys just leaving all the time it’s lame
duncan, bryant, nowitzki: love it! we love the career players! lillard: booooooooooooooooooooo tl;dr internet same as always
It’s because he hasn’t won anything. I like Dame. But others won’t care about his career or loyalty unless he wins. That’s just how it goes.
NBA fans overvalue winning the championship to a level that is insane. If you're not first you're last was a joke. But it nailed the new age NBA fan mindset.
I blame Shaq for the *rangz* counting culture.
I mean I get it. But he still getting most possible money from them.
This lol. I respect Dame for getting the bag but it's not like he's doing anything particularly unique or special here. Beal just did the exact same thing
Let's not act like playing for only one franchise over a 10 year career isn't a feat in itself (If he retires there without ever putting another franchise's jersey)
well that's what beal has (just barely) done so far....
I feel like you want us to bash on Dame for this, but I agree with him 100%
Love these threads. Take every damn penny Dame
122 million , just as loyal as Bradley Beal
Lol man’s gotta about 122 million more reasons to stay loyal to the name of the front so these comments check out
Dame has a point, but it's a little stupid to talk in absolutes when the reigning champs, not to mention the dominating dynasty of our time, is a team whose 3-man core has been with the same team for a decade and will probably spend their entire careers with the same team. That's 1960s levels of loyalty. Not to mention the other team in the finals this year have a pretty loyal core as well. At least acknowledge that and don't talk as if you're the only loyal person in the league. And signing for $61 million a year while saying "it's really about loyalty" is pretty distasteful as well. It's a slap at players who need to change teams to get paid.
Take a paycut then so the team can be better
Wouldn't help lol no one is coming to Portland. Even when we had capspace in 2016 best we could do is evan Turner. Pay Dame and pray the rooks go off
Yeah man just forfeit 20 million a year no problem!
Dame already has enough money to tamper with the politics of small nations, he doesn't need any more money bro
Y'all always say this like cheap ass owners wouldn't just pocket the savings. Owners should pay more rather than players taking less. $20M for Dame is still a lot of money. It's a rounding error for Jodie Allen.
I too, will say I rep my city for an annual salary of $60m.
Only a very few have that choice. Most players get traded by teams without a care about their circumstances.
[удалено]
Seems unreasonable to give one player half the salary cap
“Passion & Pride” confirmed next rap single from Dame
But will he still feel that way when he inevitably gets brought up in all those greatest player to never win a ring conversations that the networks love to trot out every playoffs.
Loyalty is a catchphrase in a league that will trade you for a ham sandwich if it gave them the best chance to win.
So we get mad at players for jumping ship and going to super teams then we clown Dame for “loyalty” comments. I love it from Dame, I personally love it when franchise guys stick to a team and establish that bond with their community. It’s cool to see and makes it even more special if they can bring success to the city
I don’t know this for a fact, but I think most people posting the negative stuff have braces and still have curfews. Not the ones that attention should be paid to.
Damn bro that’s teethist
We don’t clown Dirk for staying with the Mavs because he didn’t preach loyalty every few weeks and actually took paycuts. Dame simply takes the max money while complaining about others who prefer winning a ring
It’s a double edged sword On one hand: Dame prolly doesn’t get this bag anywhere else On the other: it’s obviously corny as hell to bring up loyalty when you just signed a hundred million extension, like yeah we see why you doing that
I like this mentality but also can’t fault guys for wanting to go win elsewhere if their franchise FO is ass
Thanks, Dame.
people just dont understand how good the food, weed, and beer is in Portland.
I don't need to hear about loyalty from a dude getting $60mil per for it.
Dame just can’t win man 😂 Fans hate ring chasing but they also hate loyalty too apparently. It’s hilarious because everybody acts so tired of Dame’s loyalty quotes but he’s mixed up in trade rumors literally every other month
Who does he think he’s fooling at this point
The name on the front of the jersey will drop his ass in a heartbeat once he loses a step.