If there was any concern of where Trail Blazers point guard Damian Lillard would find motivation next season after Portland smashed expectations to advance to the Western Conference Semifinals in 2015-16, look no further than ESPN's Summer Forecast for 2016-17 Most Valuable Player projections.

In what the Worldwide Leader calls "the most accurate predictions in the game" where first-place votes equal five points each, a second-place vote is three points and a third-place votes are one point apiece, Lillard recieved just a single third-place vote from ESPN's panel. Leading the way, Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James received 18 first-place votes and 145 total points. Following James are Oklahoma City guard Russell Westbrook, Golden State Warriors forward Kevin Durant, San Antonio Spurs forward Kawhi Leonard and Warriors guard and reigning MVP Stephen Curry, respectively.

Joining Lillard in the "Others receiving votes" category are Houston Rockets guard James Harden, Los Angeles Clippers guard Chris Paul, Pacers forward Paul George, Spurs forward LaMarcus Aldridge, Clippers forward Blake Griffin and New Orleans Pelicans center Anthony Davis. LIke Lillard, Minnesota Timberwolves center and last season's NBA Rookie of the Year Karl-Anthony Towns picked up one third-place vote.

Lillard finished sixth in the NBA in scoring in 2015-16 with a career-high 25.1 points per game while also finishing in the top 10 in assists with a new career high of 6.8 assists each game. Though not elected to play in the 2016 NBA All-Star Game, Lillard was awarded Second Team All-NBA honors at season's end.