A bombshell dropped on this planet of basketball on Saturday afternoon. Lower than 24 hours into the opening of the NBA’s free company interval, Damian Lillard knowledgeable the Portland Path Blazers that he would like a trade. Quite a lot of groups are unsurprisingly taken with buying his companies, however stories point out that Lillard has his eyes set on one team: the Miami Warmth.
Lillard has mentioned previously that he’d wish to be in Miami and play with Bam Adebayo, with whom he’s shut, and seeing as how he desires to compete for a championship, it could make sense that he’d be taken with becoming a member of a staff that made it to the NBA Finals final 12 months. The problem that Lillard might theoretically face right here is that Portland doesn’t essentially should commerce Lillard to Miami, as his contract doesn’t have a no-trade clause.
In accordance with Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, there’s a way that the Blazers’ entrance workplace is keen to go searching and do what they’ll do to land a “star-level return” for the most effective participant in franchise historical past. That, after all, means there’s no assure that Lillard would get a transfer to the Warmth.
Blazers’ Joe Cronin: “We now have been clear that we wish Dame right here however he notified us right this moment he desires out and he’d desire to play someplace else. What has not modified for us is that we’re dedicated to successful, and we’re going to do what’s greatest for the staff in pursuit of that purpose.”
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 1, 2023
Entrance places of work speaking to Portland right this moment had been left with impression that GM Joe Cronin is pursuing a star-level return bundle for Damian Lillard – and that Cronin plans to look effectively past the Miami Warmth to seek out one. https://t.co/9NWtJN9JLm
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 1, 2023
A problem that the Warmth would possibly find yourself needing to type out in all of that is that probably the most interesting participant who could possibly be moved right here is Tyler Herro, and he doesn’t fairly slot in alongside Portland’s younger core of Scoot Henderson, Shaedon Sharpe, and Anfernee Simons, assuming that the Blazers would hold all three of them going ahead. That’s not an inconceivable scenario to treatment — Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report noted {that a} deal between the 2 groups would possible want a 3rd staff, and whereas that doesn’t essentially imply it could be to accommodate Herro, it’s simple to see why he may not be a slot in Portland. However regardless, whereas it’d make sense if the Blazers don’t wish to do flawed by Lillard in spite of everything he’s achieved for the staff, it is a scenario the place the most effective consequence for the staff and the most effective consequence for the participant don’t absolutely align with each other.
