No, Lillard isn’t the best Blazer of all time; these two players were better
By Tyler Key
Bill Walton is the most decorated player in Trail Blazers history
Some may argue that Walton’s 4 seasons in Portland before his injury is not long enough to be considered in the franchise’s all-time great conversation. However, the argument for Walton over Lillard on the all-time Blazers list is simple in that his peak was one of the best in NBA history. Walton won major awards that no other Blazer, including Lillard, has been able to win, and he won Portland’s only NBA title.
In four seasons with Portland, Walton averaged 17.1 PPG, 13.5 RPG, 4.4 APG, and 2.6 BPG. In 1996-1997, Walton out-dueled a prime Julius Earving in the NBA Finals and helped the Blazers beat the Philadelphia 76ers 4-2, earning Finals MVP in the process. In the finals, Walton averaged a whopping 19.0 RPG to go along with 18.5 PPG, 5.2 APG, and 3.7 BPG. One season later, he also won the 1977-1978 league MVP. Unfortunately, during that same season, he had his first of many serious foot injuries and was never the same again.
Walton remains the franchise leader in RPG, defensive rating, and box plus/minus. Additionally, he is tied for first in BPG and is #2 in player efficiency rating, rebounding percentage, and win shares per 48 minutes. The “what if” question of how many rings the Trail Blazers could have had with a healthy Walton will never be answered, but it is likely that Walton could have added a 2nd title in 1978 or 1979 before both Magic Johnson and Larry Bird entered the league in 1980. Regardless, for 18 months Walton was regarded as the best basketball player in the world.