A Miami Heat acquisition of Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard is likely to come at a steep cost, with one report indicating that it will require giving up a package that includes multiple first-round picks and Tyler Herro.
Aaron Fentress, who covers the Trail Blazers for the Oregonian said (at the 20-second mark) that the Trail Blazers hope to get plenty in return for the superstar guard
“If [POR] can come out of this w/ 4 firsts, at least 1 if not 2 young talents & salary filler, that should get it done. I’m told that right now, Heat has 3 firsts, Herro, filler, & maybe a young player already—like willing to go w/ that…I’m told it’s pretty close”@AaronJFentress pic.twitter.com/siHcD4GOfp
— Dru (@dru_star) July 13, 2023
At present, no team is apparently close to acquiring Lillard, a future Hall of Famer. Even though countless teams would like to make a deal for the superstar, Lillard is reportedly only focused on making a trade to the Heat a reality.
The idea that getting Lillard would require the Heat to surrender multiple future assets doesn’t come as a surprise. Despite the fact that Lillard will turn 33 on Saturday, he remains an extremely productive player.
During the Trail Blazers’ disappointing 2022-23 campaign, Lillard finished with per-game averages of 32.2 points, 7.3 assists and 4.8 rebounds. That scoring output over the 58 games he played in this past season marked a career-high for the guard.
Giving up future first-round picks is probably the least of the Heat’s concerns, given the team’s frequent drafting spot in the latter part of the opening round. In addition, the Heat’s knack for finding unknown quantities and developing them into NBA-quality players can help reduce the team’s reliance on the draft to acquire new talent.
However, losing a player like Herro would be a painful component of any deal. Since the Heat selected him with the 13th overall pick of the 2019 NBA Draft, Herro has developed into a highly productive player who’s averaged just over 20 points per game the past two seasons.
During the 2022-23 regular season, Herro was one of three Heat players to go past the 20 points-per-game threshold. Unfortunately, he only played in 19 minutes of the postseason before a hand injury ended his season.
The Trail Blazers have the upper hand in any trade negotiations since they aren’t required to trade Lillard, despite his request. When it comes to the Heat, it may end up being a case of the team having to bite the bullet and mortgage a good part of the future to make it happen.
