“I Want Damian Lillard”: Stephen A Smith Puts His Foot Down After Julius Randle and New York Knicks’ Collapse in 6 Games

Tonoy Sengupta | 14/05/2023
"I Want Damian Lillard": Stephen A Smith Puts His Foot Down After Julius Randle and New York Knicks' Collapse in 6 Games

Jalen Brunson did absolutely everything he could to keep the New York Knicks’ season alive. However, it just wasn’t to be. His co-stars couldn’t step up enough to help him out. And in the end, they ended up crashing right out of the playoffs in just 6 games against the Heat. ESPN analyst, Stephen A Smith is known to be an avid fan of the Knicks and has been so for practically his whole life. So when he was forced to feel disappointment yet again, he decided that it was time to get desperate, naming Damian Lillard as the franchise’s ‘must acquire’ player of this offseason for his favorite franchise.

Damian Lillard on the other hand is famous for being the poster child of the bad side of ‘loyalty’ in the NBA. At the end of the day, there isn’t much you can win when your franchise continues its incompetence at pairing you with the right pieces from the start of your career all the way until your late prime. So, perhaps Stephen A Smith’s words are worthy of being looked into.

 

Stephen A Smith claims Damian Lillard is the best potential target for the Knicks

Julius Randle is a very good player. However, to have him as even the second option isn’t fitting for a championship team. At the end of the day, no matter how good he is during the NBA regular season, Randle appears to shrink when it matters most in the postseason. Instead, you need a clutch star to pair with Jalen Brunson who can get buckets in bunches. And according to Stephen A Smith, that player is Damian Lillard. Take a look at the tweet by the analyst below.

“Pain… I want Dame (Damian Lillard).”

Of course, it has been famously difficult to get Damian Lillard out of Portland. After all, the man just refuses to leave. However, he has been dropping hints here or there for a while now about considering a switch. So perhaps, we could be closer to a Damian Lillard move away from Portland than anyone expected.

But will he really choose the New York Knicks? Only time will tell.

Post Edited By: Tonoy Sengupta
Damian Lillard Jalen Brunson Julius Randle NBA New York Knicks Stephen A Smith

About the author

Tonoy Sengupta

Tonoy Sengupta

Tonoy Sengupta is a Senior Editor at The SportsRush. Coming from an athletically inclined family, he has been surrounded by sports ever since he was 4 years old. But, while initially pouring all his time into Football (soccer), at 14, Tonoy discovered basketball through the countless highlights of Stephen Curry humiliating players from Curry Land. And just like that, a fiery passion for the game was ignited within Tonoy. And soon after, he decided to become a student of journalism, graduating in 2022, and choosing sports as his area of interest. Today, you can find him spending 99% of his time browsing through every type of content on every team in the NBA, before uncorking everything he has found to the world. In the 1% he isn't doing this, you can find him playing Basketball, Football, Volleyball, or practically any other sport he has had the opportunity to learn.

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