Lillard from today

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riverman said:
I never bought the offseason talking heads drama period....he's the man I thought he is and we're lucky to have him...he has millions of reasons to stay home and raise his family in style...Go Blazers!
There's zero incentive for him to move his empire when he's just built it here...he knows it's his team. Don't be suprised if he becomes and MVP and champion in Portland..greatest Blazer ever...
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That sure would be fun to watch.
 
so can we cut Blevin now? So many other player deserve a chance at NBA but someone like Blevin just got that chance TWICE cause he is someone's cousin.
 
https://theathletic.com/2901000/202...tland-and-one-reason-why-is-chauncey-billups/

It was an even stronger affirmation of his loyalty to the Trail Blazers than the one he made on media day when he vowed that he would “go out on his shield” trying to bring a title to Portland.

But never before has he revealed exactly why his mind and his heart have returned to Portland after a tumultuous summer when he considered thoughts of uprooting from Portland.

The main reason? New coach Chauncey Billups.

Lillard told The Athletic that a series of conversations with Billups over the summer helped center his thoughts back to Portland and what could happen if he stayed.

Those conversations — Billups said it was five or six, some of them in person, some on the phone — dealt with basketball philosophy, strategies and concepts. But they also involved topics that penetrated to Lillard’s core. They talked about family, life after basketball, and the qualities found in a winner.

“Over time, the more we talked, the more we connected, just as people,” Lillard said. “It was like, I’m willing to go down in flames with him if that’s what it comes down to. We haven’t even been in one game together, but if that’s what it comes down to, I’m willing to go down with him. The same way I was willing to go down with (former coach) Terry (Stotts).”

“I think a big part of (my change in mindset) was me and Chauncey’s conversations, and where we see things the same,” Lillard told The Athletic. “I’m not going to share details of our conversations, but it’s not often when I speak to people that they see what I see. Watching a game, observing people … there’s not many people who see what I see. But a lot of what I see, he sees. So that was very important to me. Like, that was a big deal.”

As much as Lillard has recently tried to backtrack from his tumultuous summer by saying other people were putting words into his mouth, he acknowledged Friday that was indeed contemplating leaving Portland, even if he never publicly said it.

“Yeah, I was upset,” Lillard said. “We lost to a team (Denver) I thought we should beat. I wanted us to show we really want to win. But I never said, ‘Oh, I’m leaving.’ I said, ‘If that’s what it comes to — if this is not what our real focus is — then maybe I will be forced to say all right, it’s not going to work.’

“But I never said I was leaving. And I never said this is not where I want to be. I never said that.”

It wasn’t until Billups was hired, and the conversations between the coach and star began that Lillard’s thinking started to change. And not surprisingly, there was one topic that spurred the shift: What is inside a winner.
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Thank Chauncey.
 
THE HCP said:
Dame said “if” we have a bad start….then “when it happens”. He might be planning on it being a rough year?
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Adversity happens to every team so yes, "when it happens."
 
Rastapopoulos said:


"I'VE built"??? Well then YOU'RE a shitty drafter, Dame. And stop signing your fucking cousin.
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Someone pee on your crumpet this morning, Rasta? I don’t think Dame was talking about what the Blazers’ roster looks like. I think he was talking about his career, as an All-Star NBA player and as a businessman, recording artist, and endorsement player, his marriage and family, what he’s been able to do for his mom and other family in getting them established in the Portland area, the house he’s had built here for his family, and his relationships with his team as well as in the community with his charitable work.
 
Sounds to me like Dame’s attitude towards team loyalty is beginning to strike a chord with some younger players in the league. LaMelo Ball had this to say recently:

“You supposed to just go to a team and build from there — I feel like that’s how it should be,” Ball said. “Especially when you like a high pick too, most likely going to a team that wasn’t as good, so you try to make them better. I feel like that’s the whole process right there.”
 
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e_blazer said:
Someone pee on your crumpet this morning, Rasta? I don’t think Dame was talking about what the Blazers’ roster looks like. I think he was talking about his career, as an All-Star NBA player and as a businessman, recording artist, and endorsement player, his marriage and family, what he’s been able to do for his mom and other family in getting them established in the Portland area, the house he’s had built here for his family, and his relationships with his team as well as in the community with his charitable work.
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Crumpets are not a breakfast food you uncultured swine.
 
Maybe I'm overthinking this but it's intersting that this question came up from the one team employee in that media scrum
 
illmatic99 said:
Maybe I'm overthinking this but it's intersting that this question came up from the one team employee in that media scrum
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I am probably underthinking it, but you lost me. Why do you say that?
 
What the hell is a crumpet? Is that the modern day grape nut or something?
 
Orion Bailey said:
What the hell is a crumpet? Is that the modern day grape nut or something?
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crumpets-1200x1200-c.jpg.optimal.jpg


And, by the way, where did this whole notion of grapes having nuts come from?
 
Pinwheel1 said:
I am probably underthinking it, but you lost me. Why do you say that?
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was it planted? casey was the one who asked it while others were asking about preseason performance/readiness, etc.

it's prolly nothing. the quotes Quick got after for his article suggest that it was simply random.
 
Said Quick article: https://theathletic.com/2901000/202...tland-and-one-reason-why-is-chauncey-billups/

But never before has he revealed exactly why his mind and his heart have returned to Portland after a tumultuous summer when he considered thoughts of uprooting from Portland.

The main reason? New coach Chauncey Billups.

Lillard told The Athletic that a series of conversations with Billups over the summer helped center his thoughts back to Portland and what could happen if he stayed.

Those conversations — Billups said it was five or six, some of them in person, some on the phone — dealt with basketball philosophy, strategies and concepts. But they also involved topics that penetrated to Lillard’s core. They talked about family, life after basketball, and the qualities found in a winner.

Lillard left the conversations inspired, encouraged and enamored. What he saw in his new coach was what he saw in himself.

“I think a big part of (my change in mindset) was me and Chauncey’s conversations, and where we see things the same,” Lillard told The Athletic. “I’m not going to share details of our conversations, but it’s not often when I speak to people that they see what I see. Watching a game, observing people … there’s not many people who see what I see. But a lot of what I see, he sees. So that was very important to me. Like, that was a big deal.”

Before their conversations, Billups said he was aware of Lillard’s unhappiness with the end of the Blazers’ season, and that his superstar might have been entertaining thoughts of asking out of Portland. But he said he never approached their talks as if he was trying to convince Lillard to stay.

“I’ve never told Dame, or asked him, to stay. Nothing. I’ve never done that,” Billups said. “I felt like the biggest thing I wanted to do was share the things that were important to me. This is what I am. This is what I’m about.

“Then, it’s on him to decide: Is it worth it? Or should I punt?”

They had known each other long before Billups was introduced as coach on June 29. But now that Billups was no longer just the former NBA Finals MVP point guard, but also his coach, their conversations hit different. With each interaction, Lillard could feel himself gravitating toward Billups.

“Over time, the more we talked, the more we connected, just as people,” Lillard said. “It was like, I’m willing to go down in flames with him if that’s what it comes down to. We haven’t even been in one game together, but if that’s what it comes down to, I’m willing to go down with him. The same way I was willing to go down with (former coach) Terry (Stotts).”

As much as Lillard has recently tried to backtrack from his tumultuous summer by saying other people were putting words into his mouth, he acknowledged Friday that was indeed contemplating leaving Portland, even if he never publicly said it.

“Yeah, I was upset,” Lillard said. “We lost to a team (Denver) I thought we should beat. I wanted us to show we really want to win. But I never said, ‘Oh, I’m leaving.’ I said, ‘If that’s what it comes to — if this is not what our real focus is — then maybe I will be forced to say all right, it’s not going to work.’

“But I never said I was leaving. And I never said this is not where I want to be. I never said that.”

It wasn’t until Billups was hired, and the conversations between the coach and star began that Lillard’s thinking started to change. And not surprisingly, there was one topic that spurred the shift: What is inside a winner.

Lillard has long been enamored about the qualities that go into making a winning player, and a winning team. Last year, long before he was named to the United States Olympic team, Lillard sought out San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich and picked his brain about the qualities of his Spurs’ title teams, and the process they went through to achieve that success.

So naturally, when Billups and Lillard began talking this summer, many of their early conversations were centered around winning, and what exactly goes into building a winner.

“Now, let’s face it: I’ve never coached,” Billups said. “So it’s not like Dame could look at my coaching acumen. But, me as a dude, what I believe in, what I know works on the floor, and the type of team you need to win it … all those things through our conversations, he found he feels the same way about it.”

But what really resonated with Lillard was what no coach could instill, what no scheme could prepare against, and what no amount of depth could counteract. It was when Billups talked about winners and what was inside them. The drive. The fury. The relentless pursuit.

He was speaking Lillard’s language. Winners know winners when they see one or hear one, and both knew they were looking at a winner.

“The mentality of a winner never changes. Never changes,” Billups said. “So you can talk about defense, you can talk about offense, and obviously we all do, but at the end of the day, spirit-wise, is the dude a winner, or is the dude a loser? Does the dude love to play the game because it gives him a great life? Or does he play the game because he has this insatiable desire to win and compete? Those things never change. So, sometimes we talked technical, and concepts, but a lot of those talks led to moments where it’s like … what’s in the dude?”

Lillard knew Billups had the resume of a winner by leading the Detroit Pistons to the 2004 NBA title, when Billups was named Finals MVP. And the more Lillard talked with him, he could tell Billups still possessed that competitive drive to win, that same fire that Lillard said kept him up at night for weeks this summer after the Blazers lost to Denver in the first round.

They not only saw the game the same, they had the same drive. That ultimately played a part in Lillard’s decision to return to Portland invested in the Blazers’ success.

“He has been where I want to go,” Lillard said. “That’s where I landed at. It’s something new; we are going in a new direction. Let’s see if he has a remedy to this. Let’s see. I won’t be able to see that if I come half-hearted.”

He is here, in full, because he says “I wanted to be a part of Chauncey’s success; I’ll take pride in being part of his success as a coach.”

Their relationship, Lillard says, is deeper today than it ever was because of their communication. They stayed and talked long after a shootaround in San Francisco last week, and have had extended conversations before and after practices during training camp. Still, it was those pivotal five-or-six talks over the summer that changed everything.

“It was all organic,” Billups said. “It wasn’t me putting pressure, not me asking this or that. It was a lot about family, about life, and about life after hoop was done. It was more than basketball. We have a great connection, and those healthy conversations are the type that allow one to make a conscious decision.”

And judging from what Lillard said on Friday, that decision is final. He is in Portland. Today. Tomorrow. And beyond. Even if the Blazers get off to a poor start.

“I like our staff, I like Chauncey a lot and I love being a Trail Blazer,” Lillard said. “I love living in Portland. I love what I’ve built. And like I said on media day, I want to see it through. And a rocky start might be part of that, but that don’t mean I’m going to flip and do something different than what I’ve always done.”

So as the Trail Blazers’ season starts Wednesday at home against Sacramento, for the 10th consecutive season, No. 0 will be leading the way. Nobody is quite sure what to make of this edition of the Blazers, but Lillard knows for certain one storyline: No matter how good the Blazers are this season, he is not leaving Portland.

“I don’t expect all times to be great times. Adversity is going to hit. There’s going to be some tough times,” Lillard said. “So if (this season) starts off rocky, or if it starts off in a struggle, I wouldn’t be happy about it. Nobody would. But I’m not going to jump ship or bail out when that happens. So, I mean, (him leaving Portland) is the easy thing and popular thing to say, but it’s not going to happen.”
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Crumpets are tasty.
Not what I ate this morning, though.
 
Rastapopoulos said:
Crumpets are not a breakfast food you uncultured swine.
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some people however are having crumpets just to soak up the beer before hitting the sack after a typical night out..one person's breakfast is anothers late night snack
 
Orion Bailey said:
Thats an English muffin!!!!


Ill expand. Who says nuts produce grapes???
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grapenuts are ground grapeseeds...also used to make grapeseed oil....I have seeded grape vines and the seeds get ground into my morning smoothies ..good stuff and supposedly has heart benefits..froze a lot of grapes this year as well as berries
 
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