The fallout from the blockbuster three-team trade that sent Damian Lillard to the Bucks after a decade with the Trail Blazers continues, as additional details emerge about the contentious divorce between the superstar point guard and his longtime franchise.
A story from Bleacher Report’s Chris Haynes published Thursday detailed some of the ways in which the relationship between Lillard and the Blazers broke down in the months following the 2022–23 season, but the reality is that tension began to rise well before the summer. For instance, the two sides reportedly found themselves at odds in the closing weeks of the previous season over the 33-year-old’s availability.
According to Haynes, the struggling Blazers approached Lillard and asked him to sit out the team’s final 10 games. The reasoning behind the request was so Portland could improve its odds in the 2023 NBA draft lottery and then purportedly use the better pick as a trade piece to acquire another veteran to play alongside the seven-time All-Star point guard.
