In NBA 2K’s “MyCareer” mode as in real life, “franchise players” are consulted in the player recruitment process. Some get fully involved, like a Kawhi Leonard, who doesn’t hesitate to grab his smartphone to contact possible targets. Others, like Damian Lillard, are more discreet.
In Portland, the relationship between President Neil Olshey and his “franchise player” is very strong. Appointed GM a few weeks before the 2012 Draft, it was he who chose Damian Lillard and who quickly gave him the keys to the team. On the occasion of this offseason, the “front office” of the Blazers, convinced that it needed recruits with a defensive profile, then wanted to consult its star leader.
“In the offseason I have a personal relationship with my teammates so I don’t like being the guy who’s going to say, ‘Alright, let’s do that, let’s get rid of this guy and bring this guy.’, ”He said after the victory over the Lakers. “But the front office asked me to name a few players that I liked, and who I thought could help our team. And I did. Our “front office” has done its job. I didn’t go and didn’t ask for anything. They just asked me for the names of the players I liked, and that’s what I did ”.
Robert Covington and Derrick Jones Jr to change the game
In one year, Portland has gone from 16th best defense in the league to 27th. With the arrival of profiles like Robert Covington and Derrick Jones Jr, the Blazers hope to have rectified the situation.
Even if it will be necessary to wait several weeks before drawing a balance, the performance of Terry Stotts’ men against the Lakers, marked by this monumental counter of Derrick Jones Jr on LeBron James, satisfies Dame Lillard.
“I think we’ve done a great job bringing in guys who can really help our team. DJ and RoCo both make us a better team defensively ”, he added. “We saw how versatile they were against Houston, switching, being active, then against the Lakers.”
| Damian Lillard | Percentage | Rebounds | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | MJ | Min | Tirs | 3pts | LF | Off | Def | Until | Pd | Fte | Int | Bp | Ct | Pts |
| 2012-13 | BY | 82 | 39 | 42.9 | 36.8 | 84.4 | 0.5 | 2.6 | 3.1 | 6.5 | 2.1 | 0.9 | 3.0 | 0.2 | 19.1 |
| 2013-14 | BY | 82 | 36 | 42.4 | 39.4 | 87.1 | 0.4 | 3.1 | 3.5 | 5.6 | 2.4 | 0.8 | 2.4 | 0.3 | 20.7 |
| 2014-15 | BY | 82 | 36 | 43.4 | 34.3 | 86.4 | 0.6 | 4.0 | 4.6 | 6.2 | 2.0 | 1.2 | 2.7 | 0.3 | 21.0 |
| 2015-16 | BY | 75 | 36 | 41.9 | 37.5 | 89.2 | 0.6 | 3.4 | 4.0 | 6.8 | 2.2 | 0.9 | 3.2 | 0.4 | 25.1 |
| 2016-17 | BY | 75 | 36 | 44.4 | 37.0 | 89.5 | 0.6 | 4.3 | 4.9 | 5.9 | 2.0 | 0.9 | 2.6 | 0.3 | 27.0 |
| 2017-18 | BY | 73 | 37 | 43.9 | 36.1 | 91.6 | 0.9 | 3.6 | 4.5 | 6.6 | 1.6 | 1.1 | 2.8 | 0.4 | 26.9 |
| 2018-19 | BY | 80 | 36 | 44.4 | 36.9 | 91.2 | 0.9 | 3.8 | 4.6 | 6.9 | 1.9 | 1.1 | 2.7 | 0.4 | 25.8 |
| 2019-20 | BY | 66 | 38 | 46.3 | 40.1 | 88.8 | 0.5 | 3.8 | 4.3 | 8.0 | 1.7 | 1.1 | 2.9 | 0.3 | 30.0 |
| 2020-21 | BY | 2 | 38 | 37.5 | 30.0 | 83.3 | 0.5 | 4.0 | 4.5 | 8.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 3.0 | 0.5 | 20.5 |
| Total | 617 | 36 | 43.7 | 37.2 | 88.9 | 0.6 | 3.6 | 4.2 | 6.5 | 2.0 | 1.0 | 2.8 | 0.3 | 24.2 | |
