Draymond GreenForward, Golden State Warriors

CJ McCollum reflects on his special relationship with Damian Lillard #nba #sports #basketball

2 Feb 2023 · 0 min

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In this interview excerpt, CJ McCollum recounts the moment after the Portland Trail Blazers clinched a playoff series, describing how the win solidified his on‑court partnership with Damian Lillard. He explains that their success demonstrated that two small, ball‑dominant guards can effectively share offensive responsibilities, helping to make such backcourt duos more popular and accepted in the NBA. McCollum shares how Lillard consistently envisioned them starting together, while McCollum was initially skeptical, focusing on his routine and role as a teammate. Ultimately, Lillard’s foresight proved correct, and their partnership became a reality.

And he just hugged me and I was like, bro, we just won, we just won a playoff series, bro.
The first year, like, we gonna be all right. What did that do for you and Dame's partnership in moving forward with the Blazers?
It did a lot for our partnership and I think it solidified the fact that we could play together as two small guards, right? Two guards who are ball dominant, two guards who, you know, control a lot of the offense. I don't wanna say we revolutionized the game. That's too big of an adjective. But I would say that we made it more popular and more common for two guards to be able to play together and it be, more accepted. But I will say that Dame always seen the vision. I didn't always see it. There was times where he would be like, "We gonna be starting together one day." And I'm like, "Bro, I don't play at all. Like, I am watching. My game starts at 3 o'clock. Like, I work out before the game. I run the stairs. Me and Will Barton play one-on-one. And I take a shower. And that's basically my day. Like, I come at 7 o'clock. Like, I already showered. Like, I'm just watching, being a good teammate." And he's like, "We gonna play one day." I'm like, "Bro, I don't see it. I don't see it." And he always seen it. And sure enough, it ended up happening.