Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard has been faced with a ton of doubt and criticism his whole life. From being snubbed out of the All-Star game, to facing critics who believed he was undeserving of a Team USA spot, Lillard has seen his fair share of negative attention during his time in the NBA.
Not always feeling appreciated, Lillard has worked like a madman behind-the-scenes over the past two seasons, quietly becoming one of the league’s top point guards. Lillard has used every negative comment said about him to his advantage, only motivating him further.
Lillard finally felt some appreciation outside of Portland on Friday at Oakland High School. He graduated from Oakland High, and felt the need to give back to a community who’s been behind him since day one. Lillard, along with three other rappers, gave Oakland students a concert to remember (Lillard is a spectacular rapper in his own right, in case you haven’t heard). To his surprise, the school honored him by hanging his jersey into the rafters as well:
Lillard also upgraded his old high school gym, remodeling the place, adding a new weight room and building a new music studio as well.
But the new look gymnasium was in use on Friday night as the aforementioned concert began right after the student’s day was over. The after school special featured performances from hip-hop stars Fetty Wap, DJ Esco and Lil Uzi Vert.
Lillard posed with his new shoe for pictures to close out the festivities, but the night truly wasn’t about apparel:
“This is bigger than basketball,” Lillard said (via Mike Richman of OregonLive). “These are the things that you come back to … it puts the whole experience, from high school to college to making it to this level in the NBA, it puts it all in perspective. And it makes you really remember what’s important.”
Check out the sights and sounds from the night at Oakland HS, courtesy of CSN’s Rosalyn Gold-Onwude’s snapchat.
Nicely done, Damian Lillard.
