Ron Schwane/Associated Press

Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James called Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard an NBA superstar ahead of the teams' meeting Thursday night at the Moda Center.

Erik Garcia Gundersen of LeBron Wire passed along King James' response when asked about Lillard, who earned his third All-Star Game selection this season.

"He's a superstar in our league," James said.

Lillard is consistently one of the NBA's most productive players, but he rarely receives the type of attention given to the likes of LeBron, reigning MVP Russell Westbrook of the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Houston Rockets' James Harden or the Golden State Warriors duo of Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant.

The 27-year-old Weber State product has also been passed in terms of outside hype by rising stars such as New Orleans Pelicans forward Anthony Davis and Milwaukee Bucks sensation Giannis Antetokounmpo as the next wave of NBA stalwarts starts to assert itself atop the sport.

Yet, Lillard's numbers are right there with the best. He's averaging 26.9 points, 6.5 assists and 4.5 rebounds through 60 appearances this season. His Player Efficiency Rating (24.93) ranks 10th in the league, according to ESPN.com.

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The California native vented to ESPN's Chris Haynes about the lack of national respect in January when he was eighth among Western Conference guards in All-Star voting:

"I've gotten frustrated just for the fact that it feels like I always got to be the fall guy and every other guy has been deserving. In the past, the thing has been, 'All right, my team has been 10 games under .500 or not in the playoffs,' but every year we've found a way to be in the postseason, and this year I think we're in much better position than we have been in the past two seasons that I didn't make it. I think I've gotten over the emotional part of it the last few times that I didn't make it. Now I'm kind of like expecting it to go that way, but I feel like I should be there."

He ended up making the game as a reserve.

While Lillard hasn't garnered the type of national respect normally associated with a player of his caliber, James' comment shows his fellow players understand the impact he's made in Portland since being selected with the sixth overall pick in the 2012 draft.