Stephen A. Smith was like many others in the NBA world last night. Overall, we were all left mesmerized by the likes of Damian Lillard. The Portland Trail Blazers superstar came out and scored a total of 71 points against the Houston Rockets. Although the Rockets are horrible this year, it was still an impressive performance that was truly hard to believe. Now, Dame is just the eighth player in NBA history to score over 70 points in a game. At this point, one would have to assume that 80 is in range for some of these three-point shooters.
Subsequently, Dame's greatness is being debated by various pundits right now. After all, he is known for his incredible shooting ability. Moreover, he has had plenty of games where he has gone for an obscene amount of points. His offense has carried the Blazers for years, and they will need him if they ever want to main their success. On First Take this morning, Stephen A. was especially excited about Dame's performance. In fact, Smith came out and offered some incredible praise to the point guard.
Stephen A. Reacts
As you can see in the video clip above, Smith calls Lillard one of the greats. Additionally, Smith noted that aside from Steph Curry, Lillard truly is the best guard out there. It was some amazing praise from Smith, who has seen a lot of guys come and go throughout the league. “Damian Lillard is one of the greatest guards to have ever played in NBA history," Smith said. "... In today’s game … tell me one guard you want, other than Steph Curry ... more than Damian Lillard? I can’t think of anybody.”
At this point, you cannot understate just how good Lillard is at the game of basketball. Pundits like Stephen A. are well aware of this, and they will continue to give Dame his flowers, moving forward. Hopefully, the Blazers will finally surround Lillard with some premium talent. He is a guy who deserves to win a title, and it would be a shame if he never got it done. For Dame, the grind continues no matter what.
[Via]