Damian Lillard gets it.
Following the Portland Trail Blazers Game 4 and, thus, first-round loss to the Golden State Warriors on Monday, the All-Star point guard said that beating the team that has ousted his own in each of the last two postseasons is officially an obsession, per ESPN.com’s Chris Haynes:
“You have to be obsessed with that because you know that they’re so good that they’re going to be there,” Lillard said after a 128-103 loss in Game 4. “That’s who you’re going to have to get through to get to where you want to get to. That’s what it is.”
Lillard isn’t even kind of wrong.
Other teams and players might not admit it. They might say they’re not only planning around the Warriors, but they most definitely are.
Barring an unforeseen change in roster makeup, the Warriors are going to be right there, at the top of the league, competing for a title as favorites, every year. Rival teams and players still have to worry about the San Antonio Spurs and Houston Rockets of the world, but those are ancillary concerns, micro problems, compared to Golden State.
Because if the ultimate end goal over the next half-decade to eight years is to win a championship, at some point you’ll have to go through the Warriors to do it. Lillard understands this, and while that guarantees nothing, his comprehension of the long-term landscape should ensure every iteration of the Blazers is prepared to face reality.
