The offseason diets and weight loss of LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony have made the most headlines, but they aren’t the only All-Stars that cut back this summer to take a step forward this season. The Portland Trail Blazers’ Damian Lillard also changed his eating habits and training regimen over the past few months, and says he can already feel the discipline paying off in his team’s first practices of 2014-2015.
Via Mike Tokito of The Oregonian, the latest star lead guard from Oakland, CA details how his new dedication to health and fitness is already paying dividends on the court.
“It was a lot of stuff I did in the weight room, like lunges and step-ups with weights,” he said. “But it was also resistance stuff, on the football field, running with weights in my hands sometimes, a soft run with bands around my waist pulling people … sled pulls and pushes…”
“When I’m running full speed and I try to raise up for a jump shot, I can stop myself and get a quality shot off instead of floating to the left or floating to the right too much,” he said. “That’s also got a lot to do with my core. I can feel it helping me already…”
Lillard’s other big change was in his diet as he cut out fast food, salt and sugar (other than from fruit)…
“I love Benihana with the extra garlic butter and fried rice and all that stuff with steak and chicken,” he said. “I thought it was necessary to cut out. Even Wing Stop. I love Wing Stop, too, lemon pepper wings. I just had to get rid of it. Once I noticed the change in how I felt, I said it was worth it.”
Training camp is dominated by these types of optimistic tidbits. In October, players always feel that measures they took to improve during their time off will prove extremely beneficial – they aren’t yet physically or emotionally exhausted by the tolls of an 82-game regular season.
But not unlike LeBron especially, Lillard’s work and words carry more weight than those of his peers. A notorious gym-rat, it speaks volumes of his natural talent level that Lillard was able to enjoy such success during his first two years in the league despite his failure to count bad calories and utilize advanced means of exercise.
The additional balance of which he speaks could make a huge impact. Lillard is already one of the most deadly pull-up shooters in the game; imagine how much better he could be in that regard if he’s now able to gain more control and center his weight upon stopping and launching. More core strength will surely help him as a finisher for the same reasons, too, something to watch this season considering his overlooked struggles in the paint throughout his career thus far.
Along similar lines, Lillard’s new level of fitness will hopefully help him make necessary strides on the defensive end. He was absolutely abused by the San Antonio Spurs in the playoffs last spring, frequently dying on ball-screens that led to wholesale breakdowns behind him. For Lillard to take the next step from fan favorite to legitimate franchise player, he must get better defensively – the ability to absorb picks from big men and still being able to chase the ballhandler from behind is the first step to doing so.
The Western Conference is stronger than ever. Many league followers are anticipating a non-playoff team from last season to join the postseason fray this time around, and that means a squad that made it in 2012-2013 won’t this April. The Blazers, rightly or wrongly, have been a popular choice for the playoff team to be on the outside looking in this season. If confidence gleaned from Lillard’s impactful summer translates to the court, though, it seems doubtful he’ll let that slide occur.
Is Lillard in for a career season?
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