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The Philadelphia 76ers have been “waiting for the Dame situation to explode” all summer, according to reports, as they consider trade packages for Ben Simmons. But there has been little to no movement on that front with Sixers’ training camp just a month away.
Damian Lillard – the Dame in that volatile situation – still hasn’t stated publicly that he wants a trade out of Portland. If anything, it seems as if the six-time All-Star might be content to stay and make another run at a championship alongside C.J. McCollum.
His teammate appeared on Friday’s episode of “The Woj Pod” with ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski where he offered that Lillard is “all in” on winning a championship. McCollum said he wasn’t speaking on behalf of Lillard, but he acknowledged the two share a close relationship. McCollum said the following (via The Oregonian):
I don’t want to speak for him, but having a close relationship, him, he and I talk every day, or every other day, from sharing memes to sending videos to each other to serious talks about our season, what it takes to win, what it’s going to takes to win a championship, I have a pretty good sense of where he’s at. And I think his goal is to win a championship.
I think, at the end of the day, that’s what we all want. We want to put ourselves in the best position to win a championship. But I mean, he’s all in. I think at this stage I can say that he’s all in. He just wants to win at the end of the day.
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Trail Blazers Coach Recruiting Simmons?
Chauncey Billups is the new head coach in Portland and he hasn’t been shy about sharing his offensive philosophy. His plan to improve the Trail Blazers drew immediate reaction from Sixers fans after Billups emphasized all the things Simmons does well on the floor. Put the Simmons to Portland train back on the tracks.
“I feel like the biggest thing I want to try and do is defensively,” Billups told reporters, via NBC Sports Northwest. “We have to be a lot better. It was a poor defensive team last year. Offensively they were really special. If we want to take that jump, we gotta be better defensively.”
Simmons finished second in Defensive Player of the Year voting in 2020. He’s arguably the best defender in the league due to his ability to guard one through five. And Billups stressed better ball movement, the other thing Simmons excels at.
“That’s the only way you break down defenses,” Billups said. “We’ll be a better ball movement team which will make us harder to guard.”
Happy Birthday, Seth Curry
Sixers shooting guard Seth Curry celebrated his 31st birthday on Monday. The undrafted sharpshooter out of Duke turned out to be a breakout star for Philly in 2021, especially in the postseason. Curry averaged 18.8 points and 2.3 assists while shooting 50.6% from three-point range in 12 playoff games. He scored 36 points in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference semifinals. Happy birthday, Seth!
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