NBA rumors: Trail Blazers laugh Heat off, Celtics trade hopes, more

Portland Trail Blazers laugh off Miami’s first offer for Damian Lillard

The Portland Trail Blazers want nothing to do with being pressured into the seemingly inevitable conclusion of Damian Lillard being traded to the Miami Heat. For one, Miami has hardly anything to offer. Second, the optics of being just one of the teams that was pressured by its star to send him where he demanded to be sent to sends a weak power signal.

Adrian Wojnarowski reported the Blazers are, “not impressed,” with Miami’s first offer.

"“One thing so far, Portland I’m told is not impressed with what Miami has to offer them,” Wojnarowski said. “Miami at the minimum needs a third team to probably take on Tyler Herro, and then they have those assets from that team sent onto Portland. Portland doesn’t have interest in bringing in Tyler Herro, their group already is built around young guards.”"

Not a good first step from Miami, but keep in mind, this is a negotiation. It’s quite possible Pat Riley low-balled to start with a low anchor, hoping to play the long game with Portland. Wojnarowski hinted that the process is expected to be a somewhat lengthy one.

Lillard does not have a no-trade clause, which means Portland has a lot of available leverage in this situation. With training camp still a few months away, there is plenty of time for the team to exercise patience and see how the process plays out.