Portland Trail Blazers: Damian Lillard Could Eventually Win NBA’s MVP Award
Jaime Valdez-USA TODAY Sports
Damian Lillard has gained the coveted NBA Rookie of the Year award in a sensational pro debut season for the Portland Trail Blazers.
Now, it could be within just a year or two that Lillard is good enough to qualify for the NBA’s Most Valuable Player award.
Many that have received the top rookie acclaim go on to take the Most Valuable Player award. But many have not.
But while the rookie of the year can come from a playoff-contending or non-contending team, the MVP accolade usually goes to a player performing for one of the better teams in the NBA. It’s very rare that a mediocre team boasts the MVP.
Portland was 33-49 during Lillard’s Rookie of the Year season. There hasn’t been an MVP candidate in the Trail Blazer roster.
Lillard can be a future MVP but he obviously has to pick up his numbers. LaMarcus Aldridge, right now, has better numbers than Lillard and might be a better player than the Blazer rookie. Lillard needs to hope that the Blazers will mature into a more formidable NBA contending team. That will make him a better player and provide him with much more notice from the media.
It could also give him more attention when it comes to the MVP race. Portland doesn’t draw attention like the larger cities would.
Lillard could be the future MVP. But it’s likely to take four or five years. The better the Blazers get, the more likely they are to put Lillard on the national stage. But it won’t happen overnight.
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