For the first three seasons of his career, Portland Trail Blazers All-Star guard Damian Lillard was teammates with LaMarcus Aldridge, who announced his retirement after dealing with an irregular heartbeat in his most recent game.

Lillard has seen up close how good a player Aldridge was during their time together with the Trail Blazers. So when he appeared on ESPN’s Jalen and Jacoby, the six-time All-Star made it clear what he wanted Portland to do to honor Aldridge.

While the 30-year-old guard admitted that some people might not have appreciated the seven-time All-Star’s decision to sign with the San Antonio Spurs back in 2015, he believes that Aldridge did enough during his time in Portland for his jersey to be retired.

In his nine seasons with the Blazers, the 35-year-old averaged 19.4 points, 8.4 rebounds, and 1.9 assists while shooting 48.5% from the field. He had three All-Star appearances while in Portland, and reached the playoffs in five of his nine years with the team before joining the Spurs and the Brooklyn Nets earlier this season.

Aside from his plea of having his former teammate’s No. 12 jersey be retired in the Mood Center rafters, Lillard also said that Aldridge’s top priority should be his health and that basketball should be the least of his concerns. While Lillard understands that it was a tough decision for him, he was also glad that he made that decision for his and his family’s sake.

Portland, meanwhile, remains sixth in the Western Conference with a 31-23 record, with Lillard and his teammates returning to the court on Friday when they face the San Antonio Spurs.