PORTLAND, OR – OCTOBER 24: Damian Lillard #0 of the Portland Trail Blazers looks to get past E’Twaun Moore #55 of the New Orleans Pelicans drives to the basket during the fourth quarter of the game at Moda Center on October 24, 2017 in Portland, Oregon. The Blazers won the game 103-93. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Steve Dykes/Getty Images)
By Awful Announcing on

The Portland Trail Blazers are enduring an up and down season so far, but Damian Lillard’s clutch free-throws and 50-point games are keeping them in the hunt for a playoff place. There’s no denying that the likes of Joel Embiid and Nikola Jokic have been great, but Lillard has given himself a good chance of landing this year’s MVP award, and there won’t be many arguing with that at the moment.

Terry Stotts’ side are priced at odds of +4500 with top NJ sports betting sites such as Unibet, bet365, and 888sport to go all the way, which suggests it’s not going to happen. Stranger things have happened, but it looks like it will be between the Nets and the Lakers at odds of +270 and +285.

Lillard has been performing well this year, but MVP calls came after an incredible 50-point haul against the Pelicans recently. He’s now tied with Time Magazine’s athlete of the year LeBron James for the 7th most 50-point games in NBA history with 12.


To think that he wasn’t rated highly in school! Hard work and tenacity have got him to where he is today and he’s only going to keep getting better at just 30 years of age.

His character off the court has been praised by many fans and it’s how he is as a person that drives his talent towards greatness. 

 

It’s not just the fans that are hyping up Lillard’s performances either. Many of his peers have been so impressed with the way he’s been playing that they won’t begrudge him MVP status if he keeps up his impressive form for the rest of the year.

 

There were some who saw Ben Simmons as a future MVP contender alongside Lillard, but Wizard’s play-by-play announcer Justin Kutcher recently said that he was the most overrated player in the NBA. Realistically, the odds suggest it’ll be a straight shootout between Nikola Jokic and LeBron James for the MVP crown, but the Lakers superstar is currently sidelined for a few weeks with an ankle sprain, which has seen his odds drift.

It’s Portland’s best start to a season since 2014 and, if they can keep some consistency, there’s no reason why a playoff spot can’t be claimed. What Dame Lillard has done to keep the Trail Blazers in the playoff picture in the absence of Jusuf Nurkic and CJ McCollum is the very definition of Most Valuable Player. However, it looks like he’s going to need a couple more 50-point games to even be considered, which is surprising.

With everything still to play for, fans are expecting an exciting end to the season. Whatever happens, let’s hope that fans can pack out arenas again soon and everything improves to the point where next year’s NBA All-Star game, which hopefully features Lillard, doesn’t match this year’s record low for viewers.