him in contract negotiations before. it wasn't a surprise that he was going to be leaving.

if the author were at least fair in the article, then i'd be more sympathetic to his cause. the reality, however, is that LA left portland to go to a team where he would in no way be the top guy on the team. in addition, while lillard is a great player, he's not aldridge. while lillard has struggled in the playoffs (yes, i know he made a great shot), LA was great.