Oh, what it says is that we owe him an apology.

And the number one person on that list would be me.

Um, I am a huge fan of Damian Lillard dame time.

I believe in it.

I always have, um, and being that, you know n ba reporters.

There's a lot of great guys out there to do a great job.

My brothers, David Aldridge is of the world to people like that.

The LASIK ooh Smith, God rest his wonderful soul.

Uh, you know, all the guys to San Metrics.

I mean, you see so many different reporters.

Different analyst Isiah Thomas is of the world and others.

And you know Adrian Wooldridge Urowsky the ultimate insider covering the sport for us the way that he does.

Uh, you know, just just all of my boys, Vincent and the crew.

Everybody, uh, that we all cover the n B a.

Uh, Chris Haynes and others with Marcus Spears love all of them.

We all know how great Damien Lil it is.

We just don't talk about it enough.

And we don't talk about it so much that we have taken this man for granted, and as a result, we find ourselves in a situation where it's LeBron.

It's Jo Ellen be.

It's even Steph Curry.

That's in the conversation now, etcetera, etcetera.

But we lose our way, and I'm gonna put myself at the top of the list, blaming myself, all of those great reporters that I mentioned and those great analysts that I mentioned.

I'm putting myself at the top of the list because I have this platform.

I have first take two hours every day, and I got Stephen a swirled and I got N ba with Stephen A and all of this other stuff, and I haven't talked about Damian Lillard enough number one in the MBA since 2000 and 12 with clutch points.

Clutch points last five seconds of the game.

Don't get me started with the last five minutes.

Don't get me started with Dame Time.

Don't get me started with him averaging 29 how he's been doing that for the last 345 years.

That right?

And he's got Portland fifth in the West, and there is no C J.

McCullough.

Who's in this game?

No, no, you know you No No, no.

Your kids.

Uh, it doesn't.

It doesn't matter.

I don't even know who the hell.

It doesn't matter that matter.

This brother Damian Lillard tell me and it's a rhetorical question.

But I challenge anybody out there to tell me who strikes more fear in you when crunch time arrives that the ball being in his hands did the ball being in his hands.

I've called Steph Curry the greatest shooter God ever created.

Let me tell you something, Steph Curry ain't being Damon and Lily.

When?

When?

When it comes crunch down.

When it comes down to clutch points, this brother is just on another level and on behalf off all the great eh?

NBA reporters, all the great aficionados, all the great analysts on behalf of everyone, I will put myself at the top of the list.

I apologize.

It's my fault because this brother Damian Lily, has been ignored for far too long.

He is the rial deal, and he does it time and time and time again.

And we don't talk about him enough where it's gonna stop today.

It's gonna stop today.

He's on that damn M V P list.

He's on that EVP list right now, and I will not make that mistake again.

I apologize.

I apologize.

Isn't my fault.

We're gonna talk about this man moving ahead because what he's doing, that what he has been doing is ridiculous.

And, oh, by the way, he signed a contract Max Kellerman, for $250 million and still doing it, and we still ignore them.

Highest paid do also rhyme by the way Damian Lillard can rhyme Uh, look, Damian Lillard is revered in the basketball world.

There's a there's like There's a cult of people in the MBA who revere Damian Lillard, the people who cover him, the fans.

Everyone knows he's probably the most clutch player in the game take for granted.

But I don't talk about it.

I can't.

I can't sit here.

You may feel like you need to apologize.

We don't talk about him as much as some of the other guys.

That's what I'm saying.

But there is good reason for that one.

He has not made a lot of deep playoff runs.

Those are the people who get talked about the more deep playoff runs you make, the more of a national figure are.

You are, too.

He's up in the Pacific Northwest.

It's not exactly a media hub compared to L.

A or New York or a sexy destination like Miami or something like that.

And three Stephen A.

He is in the M V P conversation, in the sense that the preseason favorite Luca Donncha, right, it was my favorite.

A lot.

I think he was slightly favored to win the whole thing before M v P before the season started and Lucas right now ranked about 10th.

He was dueling with Willard last night.

Miller got the best of it, right.

Lillard hit to go ahead shot.

Dodge missed the game.

The shot that would have done that would have saved his team.

And yet most people have Damian Lillard ahead of Lucca right now in the M V P race.

You know the reason he's not talked about even Maura's.

If I said to you, is he topped two m v p?

No, it's LeBron or Embiid right now.

You know, if you wanna bring up someone else, it's k d.

Maybe Yokich.

After that, you know you can get to some.

Is it Steph for Lillard in other words.

It's kind of like the All Star Game thing.

Well, that guy was snubbed.

Well, if he snubbed, you gotta tell me who should be off the team to put him on.

Damian Lillard is a top 10 player.

I think everyone agrees with that.

Damian Lillard is in the M V P conversation, but not one of the two guys right now who we believe is going to win.

Damian Lillard is a great player, but we're not taking his team to win the championship.

That's why he's not talked about more.

Max Russell Westbrook won the M v p.

What were they succeed?

I know he averaged a triple double, but they will succeed.

And let's face reality Got mad respect for Russell Westbrook.

He ain't never been this dude.

Russell Westbrook, the most athletic point guard in NBA history.

But in terms of running the team, being the leader and being the shot maker, he ain't never been Damian Lillard.

We talked about him or stuff.

I don't know.

I don't know about that.

I don't know that e And there was this.

The only time we've talked about Damien Lil it was when he was in a bubble or when he got into the rat battle with shock.

That's it.

Wait, guys, this was 30 like that will be going into the final minute of, ah, game.

Thanks for watching ESPN on YouTube for live streaming sports and premium content.

Subscribe to ESPN plus.