>>31851330I guess that's true.
Personally, I think it's okay for protagonists. Most of the time, Training Pokemon and aiming to be the Champion is literally all they care about. They go on to pretty much fight all trainer in the region and most of the time don't show any signs of weakness when it comes to training. The aforementioned rivals, you pretty much use them as stepping stones to rise above.
Lillie just doesn't seem like someone capable of that. I guess it's a subjective thing.