Damian Lillard has requested a trade away from the Trail Blazers organization, according to The Athletic’s Shams Charania.
The Heat and the Nets are two teams with the best chances to land Lillard. Per Charania, Lillard “specifically wants to play for the Heat.” ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski also reported that the Clippers and the 76ers were interested in exploring trades for Lillard.
Portland is expected to assess deals that would provide the franchise with draft assets and young talent, according to Wojnarowski. Saturday’s news comes after Portland general manager Joe Cronin stated Monday that he hoped to keep Lillard in a Trail Blazers uniform.
“We had a great dialogue,” Cronin said in a statement following a meeting with Lillard, per The Oregonian‘s Bill Oram. “We remain committed to building a winner around Dame.”
Even more, Lillard had been consistent on his desire to remain in Portland as a contender rather than joining forces with one of the star-studded teams around the league. The seven-time All-Star, who has spent his entire career in Portland, is entering the third season of a four-year, $176 million extension.
Portland has centered its free agency moves this summer around retaining Lillard. On Friday, shortly after the league officially started free agency, Jerami Grant reportedly agreed to a five-year, $160 million deal to return to Portland, according to Charania.
Sam Amick of The Athletic previously reported that Portland’s ability to retain Grant and sign Draymond Green was part of a “dream scenario” for Lillard to remain with the franchise. While Grant signed a new deal, Green returned to Golden State on a reported four-year deal worth $100 million.
Watch the NBA with fuboTV. Start your free trial today.
However, after weeks of speculation, Miami appears to be the frontrunner to acquire Lillard in a trade. If Portland does trade Lillard to Miami, it creates an ideal situation for him to compete immediately for a NBA title alongside Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo, both fresh off a 2023 NBA Finals run.
Since Lillard joined Portland in 2012, the franchise’s best season came in ’19 when the Trail Blazers made an appearance in the Western Conference Finals against the Warriors. However, Golden State swept Portland on its way to winning an NBA title that season.
Portland has not played in the postseason in each of the past two seasons and has registered a combined 60-104 record. Lillard, who turns 33 on July 15, averaged a career-high 32.2 points per game in 58 contests last season. He also shot 37.1% from three-point range and averaged 7.3 assists and 4.8 rebounds per game.
