It's far too early to take rookie's statistics all that seriously, but when a player starts off as hot as Damian Lillard has, it needs to be noticed. Lillard, as you may have heard, has put up numbers in his first three pro games that put him in the rare company of only Oscar Roberston.
Lillard's great start does not necessarily mean he will be an All-Star. But, like Jeremy Lin last year, when a player is extremely productive the first time they are given big minutes, it is an extremely auspicious sign. Lillard was excellent in Summer League, excellent in preseason, and excellent in his first three real games. This means something. In the very least, barring injuries, it seems safe to say Lillard will be a very good player in this league. And he might end up being much better than that.
Lillard's immediate stellar success comes as a surprise to almost everyone. Advanced statistics pegged him as a decent prospect, but not much more. Questions about his age (he's already 22) and whether he could be a true point guard seemed to hold him back. It was in interviews and pre-draft workouts that Lillard's stock really seemed to rise. He went to a small school and was relatively old - and he still made enough of an impression on the Trailblazers for them to select him #6.
It was a great choice by Portland, and they should be commended for it. It's too early to make any valid long-term projections on these rookie players, but both Lillard and Andre Drummond probably should have been selected much earlier (Drummond lasted to #9.) I'm sure a few teams that bypassed these guys are already kicking themselves.
RSS Feed