Per ESPN, Portland Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard has been traded to the Milwaukee Bucks in a shocking three-team deal, including the Phoenix Suns.
In the trade, Milwaukee solely receives Lillard. Portland will receive guard Jrue Holiday, a 2029 unprotected first-round pick, 2028 and 2030 pick swaps from Milwaukee, center Deandre Ayton, and young forward Toumani Camara from Phoenix. Furthermore, Phoenix will get center Jusuf Nurkic, forward Nassir Little, and guard Keon Johnson from Portland, and guard Grayson Allen from Milwaukee.
For the Blazers, their rebuild continues and seem to be adamant about flipping Jrue Holiday to another team. Their troubled Damian Lillard saga ends, his initial trade request coming in early July 2023. Lillard will leave the Blazers after leading them to one Western Conference Finals appearance over his eleven-season tenure. Lillard was selected to seven All-Star games, as well as seven All-NBA teams during his tenure. He is coming off what might be the best year in his career so far, averaging 32.2 PPG, 7.3 APG, and 4.8 RPG. In this season, he scored 71 points in one game, one of the most efficient performances in NBA history. However, an incredible year by Lillard still couldn't help Portland go to the playoffs, finishing 13th in their conference at 33-49.
Lillard's transition will be historic, as ESPN states, "Lillard's 32.2 points per game is the most by a player to change teams the following season."
Lillard's trade request drama seemed to be headlined by the extremely realistic possibility that he would be traded to the Miami Heat. This headline was spurred by a report stating Lillard's agent told all other NBA teams interested that they'd be trading for an "unhappy player". According to the Miami Herald, the Miami Heat wanted to give Portland an offer of "Tyler Herro, two first-round picks (2028 and 2030) along with a contract such as Kyle Lowry or Duncan Robinson." Lillard's want to go to Miami eventually became subject to the decisions of the Trail Blazers' GM.
The Bucks' move to take Lillard is a huge step for the organization, as their star Giannis Anteotkounmpo stated he wouldn't guarantee that he would sign a contract extension the following offseason, unless "everybody’s on the same page". The Bucks, coming off a first round exit after being seeded first in the Eastern Conference, look to give Antetokounmpo and forward Khris Middleton a reliable, clutch playoff-performing star to get them back to the NBA Finals for the first time since winning it all in 2021. The move also could allow Antetokounmpo to see the future of the organization, possibly to convince him to stay to bring titles home with Lillard.
As for such "unhappy player" remarks that Lillard's agency put out in July, Lillard seems determined to help Milwaukee go far. He would tweet out his excitement for his new team, as well as stating he wanted to address Portland Trail Blazers fans "truthfully", and reaffirm his love for the city and its fans.
As a result, Lillard would drop a track entitled "Farewell", under his rapping stage name Dame D.O.L.L.A. He would speak about his journey in the NBA, but he would dedicate the final minute of the song to addressing Blazers fans.
"Amazing what I get in return for this labor/I continue leaving trails, but won't be for the Blazers/To the fans, man, I love you, it's unconditional/Reasons for me leaving the city's nothing typical/So it's imperative not to believe the narrative/Just know that what I left is better than what I inherited/I leave at peace 'cause I know in the end that this is business/Hope you remember all the things you got to sit and witness/In the future, man, I hope we greet with hugs and kisses/ But you should know that they the ones who chose another mission." - lyrics, reported by USA Today.
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