Portland Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard reportedly has not requested a trade from the team and plans to wait to see what the Blazers do in free agency this offseason.
Lillard, who has spent his entire career in Portland, could look to move on and head to a contender – like the Miami Heat – if he doesn’t like the direction of the franchise.
The Blazers had a great trade asset in the No. 3 overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, but they opted to retain the pick and draft standout guard Scoot Henderson. If Portland does end up trading Lillard, it will likely begin a rebuild with Henderson as one of the core pieces.
Lillard reportedly wants the team to bring back forward Jerami Grant this offseason as well as make a run at Golden State Warriors free agent forward Draymond Green.
Portland already has some solid guards in Lillard, Anfernee Simons, Shaedon Sharpe and Henderson, so adding Green to the frontcourt could help the team compete in the 2023-24 season.
During the 2022-23 season, Green averaged 8.5 points, 7.2 rebounds, 6.8 assists and 1.0 steal per game for Golden State while shooting 52.7 percent from the field and 30.5 percent from beyond the arc.
The former Defensive Player of the Year is a great playmaker and leader that could fix Portland’s defensive issues. The Blazers finished the 2022-23 season with the No. 28 defensive rating in the NBA.
Grant was solid for the Blazers, averaging 20.5 points per game while shooting 47.5 percent from the field and 40.1 percent from beyond the arc.
If the Blazers don’t end up making offseason moves that Lillard approves of, it’s quite possible he will request a trade.
It was recently reported that Lillard has “serious interest” in joining the Heat, who made the NBA Finals in the 2022-23 season.
The Heat would need to put together a competitive package for the seven-time All-Star, but adding Lillard to a core of Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo would easily make Miami a top threat to win the title in the 2023-24 season.
The Lillard situation in Portland should start to sort itself out once free agency begins on Friday.