Even though many around the NBA had been anticipating Damian Lillard’s trade request for several weeks now, Saturday’s news still sent shocks throughout the basketball community. Initially, trade rumors heavily pointed toward the seven-time All-NBA point guard heading to the Miami Heat, but that may not be the case.
There’s widespread interest any time one of the best players in the NBA gets put on the trade block, and that’s no different with Lillard. Meanwhile, from the Blazers’ perspective, they know negotiating with just one or two teams won’t get them their best trade return for the face of the franchise.
While the Blazers would like to place Lillard in an environment he can succeed in. They also must do what’s best for the organization.
So instead of limiting their options to just one or two teams, as Adrian Wojnarowski reports, the Blazers do not plan to cooperate with Lillard’s request to land in a specific spot. The Blazers are instead “open for business everywhere in the league” when it comes to trading the soon-to-be 33-year-old.
They are said to specifically be seeking any combination of young players, draft picks, and salary cap relief, likely prioritizing the first two. In other words, despite Lillard’s apparent desire to land in Miami, they don’t have any more leverage than any of the other 28 teams who have a chance to pursue Lillard.
Related: Why the Damian Lillard trade request seemed inevitable despite previous patience to Blazers