Weber State alum Damian Lillard's ties to Utah go back more than a decade, and a homecoming would help make the Jazz a contender, Tribune columnist Gordon Monson writes. TakeNote
The Weber State alum’s ties to Utah go back more than a decade and a homecoming would help make the Jazz a contender, the Tribune columnist writes.
Well. It’s time for desperate, empty hands to shake. He’s been loyal to the Blazers and been paid royally for that loyalty. It’s best for all involved to chuck that last part to the wind. Lillard ended up at Weber for the same reason he’s lasted so long in Portland — yes, loyalty. Then-’Cats coach Randy Rahe was all over a young Lillard before anyone else was. Rahe saw early on what other coaches were slow to recognize — that the athletic kid with the rough edges out of Oakland was going to smooth those edges into a bright shine.
As Lillard has kept in his memory who believed in him at the beginning, the Jazz, if at all possible, should believe in him now, making that bold move toward contention by offering up what is theirs to offer — a load of first-round draft picks. For Lillard, it makes no sense for him to jump from mediocrity in Portland to mediocrity in Salt Lake City. The move for DL, on both the player’s and the club’s part, would have to be a move toward the top of the West. That’s why the future picks would have to be such a huge part of the transaction. The Blazers want flexibility and growth into their future, as well.
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