As the NBA continues to reel from the sideffects of the Damian Lillard trade, it sounds like the All-NBA player is excited to play for the Milwaukee Bucks. Lillard took to Twitter (not calling it X) to announce that he is excited about his next chapter for the Bucks.
Previously, it was speculated that Lillard might request a trade from the Bucks at some point in the future. For now, it seems like Lillard will be staying with Milwaukee. It's also hard to not go to a destination that is a championship contender and you are under contract for the next four years.
The casuals won’t be addressed but the trailblazers fans and city of Portland that I love truly will be … and they will be addressed truthfully. Stay tuned
— Damian Lillard (@Dame_Lillard) September 27, 2023
Excited for my next chapter! @Bucks 🎟️
Maybe at the trade deadline if things go south then he might request a trade but for now, Lillard is teaming up with Giannis Antetokounmpo for the foreseeable future. At the very least, the Trailblazers got a thank you from quite possibly the best player in franchise history before he left. The fans will one day honor Lillard contributions to basketball in Portland but for now, everyone has a salty taste in their mouths.
Did the Blazers get enough for the player that the fans loved the most?
At the end of the day, the Blazers were never gonna get full value for their disgruntled star. The All-NBA player has officially wanted out since free agency. When a trade request takes that long and the player in question only says that he will go to only two teams, then his value will not be fulfilled in return.
At the end of the day, the Trailblazers didn't even get the lot of draft picks that a team can usually acquire for an All-NBA player. If they had traded Lillard very early in the offseason, they might have been able to receive more. A center like Deandre Ayton might be a good fit for Scoot Henderson down the line but this could end up turning into very little for an All-NBA player.
Yes, Ayton is a young center but he could be nothing more than a solid starting center in this league if he shows no growth since his days with the Suns. A starting center, some lower tier young players, and three draft picks (one real, two swaps) is not a good deal for an All-NBA player no matter how you spin it.