Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups caught up with longtime writer Steve Aschburner for a Q&A.
Here’s some quotes I found interesting about Damian Lillard and Scoot Henderson.
Any sense that Lillard lobbying publicly for a trade and where he prefers to go could drain the goodwill he’s built up there?
Dame has been incredible. To the fans of Portland, to our organization. He hasn’t been negative at all to anybody in our organization. Dame has been a stand-up guy. A professional the whole way through. It’s the business at hand. I don’t think there’s pressure on either side.
As this drags on, though, would it be hard for him or the circumstances to not hurt your team’s situation?
I’m not sure. Dame is one of the most stable human beings I’ve ever been around. He’s not about any type of drama. So this whole process probably weighs very heavy on him. It’s just not who he is.
But he’s at a crossroads in his career, and he’s doing what he feels is best for him and his family. I’m always going to be supportive of that.
Naturally there is a ton of excitement about Scoot Henderson, the No. 3 pick in the Draft. What’s realistic for him as a first-year player?
Scoot is going to be a star in this league. He plays both sides of the floor with ferocity. He is very, very driven. He’s a playmaker, he’s a real point guard. Got some leadership about him. He looks like he’s the starting safety of the Denver Broncos. He’s going to be an exciting player for the whole world to watch but our fan base, they can rest assured they’ll be entertained.
