A hilarious Bucks-Heat trade that placates Damian Lillard a year too late

Have you ever felt an ounce of regret? Of course, you have it's human nature! Maybe you wanted to go on a trip but changed your mind at the last minute. Or maybe your trip was canceled due to circumstances out of your control. Damian Lillard of the Milwaukee Bucks probably feels some type of regret about not ending up in Miami last off-season.

It wasn't Lillard's fault he didn't end up in South Beach. He had his destination set when he told the Portland Trailblazers front office that Miami was the spot he wanted to go. After reportedly telling Lillard they'd try to honor his wishes, the Trailblazers and Bucks shocked the hoops world when Lillard was dealt to the Bucks on the tip of the 2024 season.

Milwaukee traded for Lillard, looking to compete for more hardware. Pairing Lillard with two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo seemed like a dream fit. But the prolific deep shooting guard and athletic, tenacious slashing big needed more time to adjust to each other than we imagined.

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Damian Lillard hasn't worked as expected with the Milwaukee Bucks

Lillard is most comfortable with the ball in his hand. He breaks coverages with 30-foot bombs and can beeline to the basket when the shot is overplayed. Lillard is most effective running the show, but so is Giannis. Antetokounmpo has won a championship, slashing and dashing his way to the basket, and is a better player than Lillard at this point in his career. It's on Lillard to adjust his game to the Greek Freak (so they say).

Due to this adjustment period, Dame could never fully gel with Antetokounmpo. In eight games without No. 34, Lillard averaged his usual 30 points per game with seven assists. That production dropped to 23.6 points in 65 games with Antetokumpo. The Bucks are a good team, with them both on the floor, and they were plus-9.5 in 1756 minutes together. They were good but didn't show enough to convince me they'd beat Boston.

Antetokounmpo missed the entire playoffs, battling a calf injury that led to the Bucks' six-game demise at the hands of the Indiana Pacers. They win that series with Antetokounmpo, but that doesn't wow me to the point where I thought they could knock off the 64-win Celtics. Even with Lillard and Antetokumpo in the lineup, they never developed the chemistry to beat a Celtics team like the one constructed — Lillard would need to be his typical self paired with a dominant Giannis to have a shot.

Outside of the Boston Celtics, who had the third-highest net rating of all time (11.6), the East got better this year. With Paul George heading to the city of Brotherly Love and Karl Anthony Towns' Big Apple arrival, the East will be a blood bath at the top — not to mention the pesky Miami Heat itching to claw their way back up the East power rankings.

Milwaukee got a smidge better by adding younger talent and veteran pieces in Taurean Prince, and they got Gary Trent Jr. at a bargain. If this group doesn't work as Bleacher Report suggests, maybe the Bucks will double back to honor Damian Lillards wishes.

Bleacher Report suggests the Bucks deal Lillard to Miami if Khris Middleton and Brook Lopez lose their battle to Father Time. A deal centered around Tyler Herro would be on the table again for Milwaukee, but is he worth moving off Lillard? You'd get younger with Herro and the Heat returns, but does that put Giannis anywhere closer to a championship? It doesn't. The Heat should keep tabs on Lillard's situation in Miami and potentially acquire more assets if they seriously want to get into another Damian Lillard auction.