Portland Trail Blazers: Is Shaedon Sharpe the one Damian Lillard has been waiting for?

Rob Ryan   |  

Oct 17, 2022

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Through his actions and comments, Damian Lillard is very high on Portland Trail Blazers rookie Shaedon Sharpe. Is he the player Dame has been waiting for to put him over the top?

With the NBA Preseason wrapped up, Portland Trail Blazers fans saw the players they were excited about back on the court or on the court for the first time with NBA players.

They saw Shaedon Sharpe, the most hyped Portland Trail Blazers rookie in some time, take on top competition. With his skill set, Sharpe will eventually help the team, especially Damian Lillard.

Draft night suspense

On draft night 2022, rumors swirled that the Portland Trail Blazers were willing to move the #7 pick for an upgrade at forward. Some of the names mentioned were John Collins, Lu Dort, and OG Anunoby.

There were also reports that if Portland kept the pick, they were most impressed with University of Kentucky shooting guard Shaedon Sharpe. When Portland drafted Sharpe at seven, everyone got their answer.

The Hype Train is Rolling

A highly talented High School player, the 6’6″ wing sat out his only season at Kentucky. Pundits criticized Sharpe for being such a “mystery” player. That criticism led the once sure-bet Top 5 pick to fall a few spots to Portland.

Now Sharpe is the Portland Trail Blazers’ most highly touted rookie since Greg Oden. For those of you about to say what about Damian Lillard, the buzz around him wasn’t the same. When Portland drafted Lillard sixth in 2012, most mock drafts had him going outside the top 10, so he was considered a “reach.”

Some thought Portland might have been able to draft him with the #11 pick, which they ended up using on Meyers Leonard. Regardless Dame, a player who played four years of college ball, not only proved his draft spot but is arguably the best player from that draft class, along with Anthony Davis.

Sharpe doesn’t have four years of college success to pad his resume. He didn’t even see the court last year. But the talent and hype are there.

When watching him on film, his offensive game appears to have no weaknesses. Additionally, he has the athleticism and length to be a good defender. It’s hauntingly familiar.

Someone else who didn’t play college ball yet was advertised as having elite athleticism with no weaknesses in his game was Kobe Bryant.

Why Kobe?

It’s a huge stretch to say Sharpe will end up anywhere close to as good as Kobe. But is it a stretch to say he could have a similar learning curve?

Bryant entered the league being 6’6” and 200 lbs. Sharpe is entering the league at 6’6” and 200 lbs. Kobe was super athletic with no weaknesses aside from experience, and Sharpe is super athletic with no weaknesses aside from experience.

Just to be clear, nobody is saying Sharpe is the next Black Mamba. The point is that Sharpe has the tools, athleticism, and talent to be an eventual nightmare for opponents in the NBA. If Kobe was the NBA’s “Freddy Krueger” for 20 years, then with his skill set, Sharpe has the potential to be the league’s “Chucky” at some point.

Mamba, the Early Years

Now to the learning curve. Kobe entered the league as the #13 pick by the Los Angeles Lakers. But everyone knows Kobe was predicted to go much higher. Before the draft, he made it known there were teams he didn’t want to play for, which led to his fall.

L.A. drafted Bryant fully knowing he would play behind starting SG Eddie Jones. At the time, Jones was 24 years old and on the verge of a breakout.

Bryant wound up coming off the bench for his first two and a half seasons. When Kobe was ready, the Lakers traded Jones for Glen Rice, a huge upgrade at small forward. After further development, Kobe kicked the door wide open, becoming an all-time great.

Repeating History

Sharpe comes to the Portland Trail Blazers behind 23-year-old SG Anfernee Simons. After last season, Simons is on the verge of being an All-Star, especially playing with Dame.

Over these next two seasons, it will be interesting to see how much Sharpe can develop. Can he be the starter by year three? If Sharpe can put it together, wow. How much would he help Lillard? How much would that help the franchise chase down their elusive second NBA title?

How much could Sharpe help Damian Lillard? (Dame already knows that answer)

On draft night, Cronin supposedly had a deal lined up that would send Sharpe, an additional first round pick, and either Nassir Little or Josh Hart to Toronto for Anunoby. It didn’t happen, and that was due to Lillard’s advice.

It was supposedly Dame who told Portland Trail Blazers’ upper management that the deal cost “too much”. Lillard was the one who advocated for keeping Shaedon Sharpe instead.

You could argue that it was the extra first-round pick or the addition of Nas or Hart that made it too expensive. Or maybe it was actually Shaedon Sharpe.

No matter what the take, Sharpe was the biggest value going north if that deal actually happened. Dame knew what a fully developed Sharpe would mean not only to his own career but to this franchise and voiced his opinion.

“He’s an ALL-World Talent… “His Talent is off the charts… “I think when you take the talent and how he is as a person when it connects, I think it could make a huge difference for our team.” – Damian Lillard quotes regarding Shaedon Sharpe.

Lillard also spoke about how humble the young man is as a person and how Sharpe is a great listener. The Portland Trail Blazers superstar also said that Sharpe is way better than he was when he was 19.

Granted, Dame was 22 when he came into the league. But take that in for a second. If 19-year-old Sharpe is this much better than 19-year-old Lillard, maybe 22-year-old Sharpe will be better than 22-year-old Dame. 23-year-old Lillard was an All-Star.

When it comes to Sharpe, Lillard sees the long-term benefits. Dame will be 35 when Sharpe is 22. Playing out his twilight years next to a 6”6” offensive monster in the backcourt sounds like the perfect way to extend an All-Star career into his late 30s and potentially ride off into the sunset with a championship ring.

Dame’s Wingmen

In his ten seasons with the Portland Trail Blazers, Lillard has already taken the court with players that showed more talent than this current version of Sharpe. Lamarcus Aldridge and CJ Mccollum come to mind.

Recent addition Jerami Grant, so far, looks to potentially be one of the best players that Dame has ever played with in Portland. It’s also very possible that Anfernee Simons hops into that conversation as well.

Aside from Ant, all of those other players reached their prime. They had value due to their achievements on the court and the potential they had already reached.

Shaedon Sharpe has more potential than any of them ever had. Damian Lillard knows this. It’s a good reason why Dame, although still looking hungry, also has a certain tone of patience in his voice that wasn’t there the last few years.

The Other Possibility

It’s very possible that Shaedon Sharpe never puts it all together. Maybe his talent doesn’t transfer to the NBA as well as the Portland Trail Blazers think he will. He certainly wouldn’t be the first mega-talented, high draft pick that couldn’t figure it out mentally.

This article would look pretty silly if that’s the case three years from now. I’d definitely eat crow. As for now, Damian Lillard sees something, and I think I see it as well.

Related Story: Top 5 Portland Trail Blazers under 25

Do you think Shaedon Sharpe is the one to put Lillard and the Portland Trail Blazers over the top? Let us know in the comments below.