Whenever the free agent saga of LaMarcus Aldridge is done and over with this summer, I hope people are able to look back and remember this Monday evening in late April.

It's when the Trail Blazers' season was on the ropes and teetering on a full-on face plant at home. With eight minutes left in Game 4, Memphis was up 10 and zeroing in on a sweep.

As moments go, it was precarious, if not daunting.

"When you have to stand tall,'' Damian Lillard said afterward, "you have to stand tall.''

Portland, let me re-introduce you to Mr. Lillard, the tallest 6-foot-3 member of the city.

In a do-or-die game, in a do-or-die homestretch, the Blazers responded on Monday, coming back to beat the Memphis Grizzlies 99-92.

There were several key contributors in the comeback - the scoring of CJ McCollum, the rebounding and spacing created by Meyers Leonard, and the interior defense of Aldridge - but it was Lillard who stood tallest in the clutch.

The signature moment was Lillard's four-point play - a three-pointer while being fouled by Tony Allen -- with 1:58 left that gave the Blazers their first lead in more than 19 minutes.

The Blazers never trailed again.

It capped Lillard's 32-point, 7-assist night, which included 12 fourth quarter points - all of them in those final eight minutes when the season appeared to be circling the drain.

So what does this night have to do with the uneasy days ahead, when an organization and a city fret about losing Aldridge, one of the franchise's legends?

It once again sheds light on what is behind the considerable shadow Aldridge casts inside this locker room.

Waiting behind him is a young leader. One of the league's best big moment performers. And one of the game's most relentless workers at his craft.

In other words, if Aldridge decides there are bigger and better things than moving atop the Blazers' record books, or if he decides he would rather play for a more established winner than take the millions more he can make by staying here, the Blazers will be fine.

They have Lillard, with Monday providing yet another bullet point on an expanding resume that he is qualified to assume the weight and care of this franchise.

To be clear: In no way is Lillard campaigning to be handed the franchise keys. He is keenly aware that Aldridge is sensitive about status and treatment inside the franchise, and Lillard has been nothing but respectful and mindful of Aldridge's perch.

Throughout the season, he often went out of his way to call Aldridge the team's best player. And Monday, when asked about his dramatic close to the game, he found a way to include Aldridge - who had a subpar offensive game - while deflecting the attention projected his way.

"A lot of things went into it,'' Lillard said of his fourth-quarter spree. "A lot of those possessions, Meyers and L.A. were keeping the ball alive. And L.A. was holding down Zach (Randolph) the whole game.''

Also, this is not to say that Aldridge lacks the traits Lillard holds. Aldridge, too, has stepped up big in important moments - Game 1 and Game 2 in Houston last season for example - and Aldridge, too, works relentlessly on his game, each year coming back either stronger physically or with an added skill.

But I'm not sure Aldridge has provided the best example of leadership in these playoffs. Not flying back on the team charter from Memphis after Game 2 sends a poor message. The playoffs, especially after two demoralizing losses, should be about unity and togetherness.

And early in Monday's game, there were several murmurs on press row whether he was putting out full effort, chatter that was silenced by some rugged and spirited play late in the game.

Meanwhile, when the season came to put-up or shut-up on Monday, Lillard spoke volumes. It came on the heels of what had been a forgettable series, both offensively and defensively. But throughout, he has never shied from the moment, or the accountability.

"If you want to be one of the better players on the team, you have to be willing to be that guy who fails when the team fails,'' Lillard said Monday.

In his moments of failure during this series, Lillard has found that people are both quick and eager to criticize. The digs - about his defense, about Mike Conley's excellence -- sting him. But they also motivate him.

"I'm not going to lay down for nobody. I'm not going to lay down while being criticized. Not going to lay down to any team. To any player. Tonight was just another situation like that,'' Lillard said. "Tonight it was: 'I'm not going to be swept.'''

He says he measures himself by his resume, which he always puts in context by noting this is only his third year. He finds he is often compared to Chris Paul, Stephen Curry and Kyrie Irving, and chastised as not being equal, even though they have been in the league sometimes twice as long.

"I have a lot of time to improve, and I want to improve,'' Lillard said. "And I think that's something that people skip over because people want to find a knock on me, a way to kick me down, a way to make it sound like 'he isn't that good.'

"And I'm not perfect. I can accept that. I'm not perfect. But I came in, and I've been the person I am - off the floor and the player I am on the court - every day.''

So regardless of what happens with Aldridge this summer, Blazers fans should rest easy knowing they have a leader in waiting. All they have to do is remember Monday night, when once again, he showed he has the foundation to support the weight of a franchise.

--Jason Quick | email | @jwquick