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“Shaedon Sharpe Ain’t Even Play College”: Damian Lillard, Despite Joining The Bucks, Is Keeping Tabs On The Young Blazers

Samir Mehdi
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“Shaedon Sharpe Ain’t Even Play College”: Damian Lillard, Despite Joining The Bucks, Is Keeping Tabs On The Young Blazers

Damian Lillard spent 11 years on the Portland Trailblazers and so it’s understandable as to why he’s still keeping tabs on the young squad. Having been on the Milwaukee Bucks for 5 regular season games now, the Dame-Giannis pairing still has a long way to go in terms of the chemistry they have to build with one another. In the meantime, Lillard seems to be scrolling through Twitter/X and making sure guys on the Blazers are shown the love they deserve, especially Shaedon Sharpe who has been their offensive engine since the start of this season.

Sharpe is averaging 20.5 points on 45% shooting from the field and n ear 38% shooting from beyond the arc all while grabbing 5.5 rebounds and dishing out 2.8 assists a game. What makes this incredibly impressive is the fact that he’s only 20 years old. Sharpe is also someone who didn’t play for Kentucky, who he had committed to and went straight from high school basketball to NBA ball.

Dame acknowledged how great Shaedon has been playing through a tweet and liked it. This caught the attention of a Blazers fan page on the social media platform and it led to quite the heartwarming moment of realization that the ‘NBA 75’ player still wants to be in the loop of what his former team is up to.

Damian Lillard wanted to win a title in Portland

It isn’t surprising in the slightest that Damian Lillard is going out of his way to showcase the fact that he is still following Blazer basketball despite being on a new team. He never wanted to leave PDX in the first place and for years, whether it was Neil Olshey or Joe Cronin calling the shots, pleaded to the front office to build a contender around him.

Given that Portland is a small market, attracting stars to Oregon wasn’t easy. Aside from LaMarcus Aldridge, Dame never once played with an All-Star in Portland with the best player being CJ McCollum.

“But it doesn’t change the amazing experiences I’ve had with the Trail Blazers and this city. I’ll always cherish this place. This is my home. I’ll always live here regardless.”

This is what Dame said to Bleacher Report upon the Milwaukee trade being finalized. Spending well over a decade in one city and growing from the 6th pick in the NBA Draft to one of the greatest point guards of all time in a single town would lead to him holding quite a bit of sentiment towards them.

“I do believe a day will come where I put a Blazers uniform on again, and hopefully by then I’ll be forgiven for breaking your hearts along with my own.”

Given that this is what Lillard had to say about the Blazers in his farewell post on Instagram, it’s safe to say that he would not be opposed to making a return to the team that drafted. It’s eve safer to assume that Portland fans would accept him with open and loving arms.

About the author

Samir Mehdi

Samir Mehdi

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Samir Mehdi is a senior strategist for the NBA division at The Sportsrush. Ever since he was 13 years old, he’s been obsessed with the game of basketball. From watching Kobe Bryant’s highlights on YouTube to now, analyzing and breaking down every single game on League Pass, Samir’s passion for the game is unwavering. He's a complete basketball junkie who not only breaks down current games but also keenly watches ones from the 60s’ and 70s’ while also reading comprehensive books on the history of the league. Samir’s life revolves around basketball and he hopes that shows in his work. Aside from work, he loves to spend time in the gym and with his friends at social gatherings.

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