Anfernee Simons Shares Amazing Stories about Damian Lillard’s Mentorship

Anfernee Simons Shares Amazing Stories about Damian Lillard’s Mentorship

The part about thinking the game though and your own skill development the balance of that in Portland like who do you who do you sort of credit for that the coaches the player development side you your film your offseason I don’t know who you work out with the

Offseason like all of it together when we talk about Player Development it seems like there’s so there’s so many different layers to it than just like oh the head coach has got to develop this guy yeah I think honestly I got to give credit to everybody they gave me just

Little things to to keep in mind whether it was what some one of my old coaches in Portland one of my coaches now in Portland um you know obviously Dame and CJ as as a guard they help me out tremendously on you know um people say

That now a lot now you can see like the influence they had on me um when I play and uh it just going to the the work you know we put in with with my trainer I train with uh Phil begner um Dame that’s Dame’s trainer and he

Introduced me to in my rookie year and we’ve been working out ever since so he’s changed the way I train um he changed the way I see the game and you know like d would D would even my rookie D would come to the side I’m not playing he

Would come to me during the game and tell me why he’s doing what he’s doing in the game so he was based on what how the defense is playing like he’s just passing along knowledge saying I’m they playing me like this watch I’m about to do this I’m about to do this because

They’re doing this I’m going to set them up now and then in the fourth quarter that’s when I’m be able to attack and that’s how I think the game now now that I’m I understand a lot more most of the time where you see me most aggressive is

In the second half so like you know people were like why are you went one for five in the first half and then went this and I’m like I’m just honestly trying to see exactly what they’re doing to me in every situation whether it’s coming off a pick and roll

Coming out a down screen what do they do if I snake the pick and roll what do they do if I put people in jail or you know I’m just hitting the pocket and just trying to loosen up loosen up the defense you know see if we can hurt them in the pocket

And they swinging out for threes but like that way of thinking that he helped me do that you know from my rookie year and I didn’t really understand what he was teaching me until I actually started playing and playing a lot lot more like my fourth or fifth year

But now I understand like going into games now like okay first quarter I am seeing like I’m trying to see exactly what they’re trying to do like last night with Brooklyn like they was I knew from the first quarter they was sending me left and you know um when they they

Brought sharp in the game they were up when they brought claxon he was in a deep job because he’s a better shot blocker and so I just understood that through the first quarter and I was able to play through there and so by the time

We got to the fourth quarter I I knew it and you know they started coming up because I started hurting them hurting them from passing and and shooting the ball and so now I just got them on my heels now and then obviously overtime you can see they was double teaming and

I was just able to pass it out and we was able to get wide open shots from there there was also a a few really deep step back jumpers I think yeah I mean I mean there’s also there’s also the yeah fourth quarter you know fourth quarter like CH always talks about it

Like fourth quarter we look for matchups and so it’s kind of hard with Brooklyn they got a lot of parts like siiz players and you just out there like who am I gonna pick I don’t want Dennis Smith I don’t want Dennis Smith on me

Right now I like that I don’t I don’t I don’t I mean I can give people free game but I don’t like smaller guards on me I don’t like people that just sit under me even though I can I can manage it but I don’t like guards I rather have somebody

That’s a little bit maybe my size or a little bit taller than me come my maybe quicker than him or something like that and get past him but um I think we were picking you know most of the time like cam Johnson I was picking Dorian Smith

Cam cam cam was a lot cam was a lot we like cam but but you guys picked on cam yesterday I like cam too Cam’s my my a lot summer but um yeah like we just picking matchups in the fourth quarter so um you know I’m

Going to be in a line of iso situations and I think that happened in the third quarter when I hit those step backs but um that just just playing the game it’s just you feel or it was spener Den witty too yeah it was Spencer Den witty too

But um it’s just playing the game I think it’s it’s really that during that third quarter second half is like everything everything anything goes now Tommy brought to my attention uh that you are obviously not total points because you’ve only played in I think 14 clutch games to this point or 14 total

Games but in in in your clutch games that you played in uh you lead the league in points per game in the clutch MH and I think what you’re describing here is that that moment of game on the line ball in your hands that actually has all

Been set up through the first three three and a half quarters of recognizing matchups and coverages right and what gives you the confidence in that moment it’s not something I even like think about you know what I mean is like you know you you’ve seen obviously Dam Dame is top 75 player

So it’s like but I don’t even think about it like that it’s just like the way he plays the game you know I so Dame time rubbed off on you I he’s H he’s hit way more way more clut shots than me but like it’s just like

How the game goes and you know Dame Dame even like say he learned that from from CP3 like just the way that CP sets up one play in the first quarter to set up a play in the fourth that’s exactly what all of the great guards do the true siup

Yeah he always says like that’s why he feels like he’s going to be able to stay in the league longer than longer than any other young guys because he feels like a lot of young guys don’t think the game that way they’re just playing off pure Instinct and talent instead of just

Thinking about you know what you need to do to make the game easier I mean you mean if you just pretty much outthink the other team is it it makes the game that much easier to play I I think there’s something to be said about you in your second year

Always taking those mid-range pull-ups too and I remember I actually remember reading there was some Dialogue on on Twitter maybe about this and there’s a tendency as a young player I think and I know I I had this too there’s a tendency young player like no I’m going to show

You that I can do this right when the game actually becomes easier you’re just like you’re just making the right play right and I think that’s the maturation specifically for guards that I think just takes time and and to agree it’s like not just guards like Brandon Ingram

Is a great example of this I I really think this like the passes he’s making now as like their primary halfcourt shot Creator he could he could he pass his ass off yeah he makes insane and like that just takes in the post he either

The post or the pick and roll like he is he is hitting that corner pass on the money or that late rotation pass on the money every single time he had one last night against Sacramento where he got to his right hand wants to finish going right and like they played pretty good

Defense but at the last second the help defender came over late right he could have shot like a little you know he’s long he could have shot a little floater off glass good chance of going in he threw a bullet pass to the left corner on time on target know cash I already

Know that’s the maturation yeah for sure everyone that we’ve talked to and everyone I talk to around the league um speaks very highly of Dame as as a teammate and a leader you’ve talked a little bit about this but just like you coming into this situation as a kid and getting to play

With him and and for a couple years there watch him quite a bit what did he mean to you in your career man um you know even from the from the first time we met like he was there at my draft workout he watched me um he came

To your draft workout yeah he saw me he saw me workout for the first time that’s not normal by the way yeah he was there not normal he saw my draft workout and uh after the workout we were just sitting there talking at the you know in

The at the little lunchroom and you know that just it started from there like he he he would saying today like he just saw something in me just from speaking to me and seeing me play how skilled I was even though I was you know a small

Kid but I was playing actually pretty well in that workout against a lot of a lot of guards that was coming out of out of college so I was playing pretty well and uh you know he was just speaking to me he just he just saw something in me

How he would just say that I had a lot of you know humbleness to me and you know I would just you know be myself in any situation and he kind of saw that from my Ricky year where a lot of people give me a hard time and I would just be

Myself know what I mean no matter what I wouldn’t change you know just because you know you know a lot of the Vets on the team would give me a hard time about stuff but um you know he just you know me watching him is just like he the way

He carried himself even through good times and bad times that’s the thing I respect about him more is that you know he kept his humility like he’s the same person he works out the same way just as hard and he’s a top 75 player and he’s

The same way since I met him from the first time and he’s succeeded so much since I’ve been in the league so um just seeing that I’m just like you know if he’s doing this there’s no way I can’t you know what I mean like even when

We’re working out together and he’s he working out hard I’m like I have no reason even though I might not feel like working out that day like there’s no reason for me have to goes harder than him I have a question I have a question

For for both of you but for you J specifically about how just sort of special it is to be a vet like this and have like a young guy who technically is like competition you know I mean you play you do similar things and it’s like some guys might be

Like intimidated by that and a little bit like oh I don’t want this young dude stepping on my turf but actually having the mentality to be not just like not you know insecure defensive about it but actually like actively supportive and helping you know basically on in a way

Like helping find your own replacement just like how unique that is uh you know just in the Le League overall I I’ll kind of speak for Dame here because I know the type of person he is I can speak for myself on this too I think you

Need a a vet and a player that’s secure like Dame’s a secure person yeah for sure I I’m a secure person like when I when I was really like a vet vet was like Philly and New Orleans and you know we drafted Landrew shamut guess who I

Shot with every day after practice get who I talked to every time he came to the bench landre shamet like that was my guy I was like hope he gets to have the type of career I have then I go to New Orleans and it was nikil Alexander

Walker like I we we had dinner together we talked after every game I was his hype man like I saw something in him right to me when you get older and you’ll experience this because you’re not quite there yet you’re not really a vet till you get to like year seven year

Seven eight but you realize like the people and I think back to my you know my own careers is like Rashard Lewis um Keon d my rookie year when I was really struggling I’d go get a FIV minute run and score two buckets and I’d come to

The bench and I’d oh man he’d just be like yo you’re gonna make a lot of money in this league man you’re gonna be all right like I still remember that those things matter and so you you who by the way was caught up in the health Scandal

Whatever but uh the the thing about it is you realize like you just want to pass it along like all the gifts that you got the free game like all the gifts that you got I need to then give to somebody I’m not I can’t take it with me

I got to give to somebody else and so I found a lot of meaning in that and you know we haven’t asked Dame about that but I know he’s done this for a lot of young guys and I’m sure he finds meaning in that too for sure I think that’s I

Feel like that’s what it’s all about just paying it for you know especially a lot of a lot of as you get older you kind of understand like what it means about what it means to impact another player and just carrying on that not would to say tradition but the way

Things should be you know you don’t want you feel like you have a responsibility to make sure the league doesn’t get out too out of control when it comes to like young players being good and doing crazy things and stuff like that so I feel

Like that’s what vets are here for and I think nobody can teach teach these young players not a somebody you bring in from that hasn’t played in the NBA I feel like somebody that has actually been in that situation needs to needs to teach that stuff yes I agree with you on that

Complet Lely

We are really psyched to welcome in Portland Trail Blazers guard, Anfernee Simons to the pod. In this teaser clip, Simons talks about the mentorship of Damian Lillard (The Milwaukee Bucks)

Subscribe to The Old Man and The Three podcast w/ JJ Redick (ESPN / First Take) and Tommy Alter YouTube channel today for more NBA analysis, player interviews and highlights.

#nba #portlandtrailblazers