A saga that's seen seven-time All-Star Damian Lillard request a trade from the Portland Trail Blazers after several years of resisting the seeming inevitability may be biggest storyline this offseason.

Having played for the Blazers for over a decade after they selected him with the No. 6 pick in the 2012 NBA Draft, the reactions from within Portland and the NBA community are exactly what one would expect — a mixture of apprehension from Blazers fans, anticipation from general NBA fans and the extreme emotions from passionate fans of the Blazers and whatever team he's projected to land on (in this case, the Miami Heat).

Lillard, who addressed his championship desires with former NBA 3-point specialist J.J. Redick on The Old Man & the Three earlier this year, reiterates the popular refrain that “winning the ring is like the ultimate level of success.”

To that point, in choosing between chasing a ring and being satisfied with his current success, Lillard says “…you wrestle with that, like, I always think about it like, man, but like, I really do want to win.”

” And I don’t think I would go crazy if I didn’t, but like I really want to win a ring,” he continues. “And the thing that I always come back to is, I feel like I’ve checked the box on everything that makes me feel like if I was done today, I’ve had a successful career because I’d be fulfilled because I haven’t taken any shortcuts.”

“Everything I’ve done represents success… as long as I’m able to just keep pushing forward and stand on it, then I’ve had a successful career. And obviously, if we win it, or if I win it, that will be the ultimate cherry on top.”