Blazers' Damian Lillard sent 'aggressive' message to front office

Damian Lillard is hopeful the Blazers can reach the play-in and make some noise, but he wants the organization to go all out in offseason

Signing an extension with the Portland Trail Blazers did not mean that Damian Lillard had abandoned his goal of winning an NBA Championship. No, what it really did was send a clear message to the organization that the star believes he can hoist the Larry O'Brien Trophy in Rip City.

Now, he needs the Blazers to validate that faith. They are one game behind the New Orleans Pelicans for the 10th seed in the Western Conference, the final spot in the NBA Play-In Tournament. So, there is little that can be done now to make the team bonafide contenders outside of Lillard going on perhaps the greatest singular run in league history.

The point guard is already averaging a career-high 32.3 points per game (third in NBA) while also dishing out more than seven assists, and the team is just 31-35. Help is needed. Lillard wants action this summer.

“That means we go into the offseason and we don’t come out the way we have in the past,” Lillard said per Sports Illustrated's Chris Mannix. “Where it’s like, ‘Oh, we’re going to try to do something,’ and then we watch other people capitalize on things that are out there, and we pass, pass, pass, pass and can’t get anything done and then it’s done.”

There has never been a better time for Portland to answer Lillard's urgent pleas. They could have multiple first round draft picks to deal as well as other assets like Anfernee Simons to land a star who can address their biggest need of defense (13th most points per game allowed).

Depending on how the rest of the season unfolds, the Toronto Raptors have a great cabinet of talent to pilfer. OG Anunoby would be the star defensive wing the franchise has yet to really add in the Damian Lillard era. Jerami Grant has been a great addition, averaging over 20 points per game, but he is going to be a free agent. If they cannot retain him, the Blazers could bounce back in a big way by adding Anunoby or Pascal Siakam.

Those are the type of moves the face of their franchise wants after all the years he has given to the organization and fans. The burden now shifts to the front office.