NBA rumors: Lillard-Heat trade talks might be dead, 76ers sign familiar vet, Griffin won't be back in Boston

NBA rumors: Things have gone completely quiet between the Heat and Blazers

According to ESPN's Bobby Marks, "meaningful" Damian Lillard trade talks between the Miami Heat and the Portland Trail Blazers are not happening. While speaking on The Lowe Post podcast, he said that the two teams are not having any dialogue at all. He said that the only way that the Trail Blazers end up trading Lillard is if the All-NBA player makes things ugly.

Lillard is stuck with the Trail Blazers due to the fact that he is under contract until the 2025-26 season. With that in mind, Portland is able to hold on to him until they receive an offer that they like. Still, All-NBA talent has been able to force their way out of teams before by making their surrounding environment undesirable.

Teams can send players away from the facility if they are causing too much of a disturbance. Still, burning Dame's $45 million salary on fire is not ideal. At some point, it can be assumed that Lillard will make the environment messy. In the same podcast, Lowe mentioned that the superstar does not want to make things messy but patience can wear thin sometimes.

As of right now, it is very hard to find a big market for Damian Lillard outside of the Miami Heat. Yes, a desperate team like the Raptors or Sixers might bite but it's hard to trade for a player who clearly wants to go to one franchise.

While it has not been confirmed, the last offer seems to be Tyler Herro, Duncan Robinson, young players including Nikola Jovic and draft picks. While Robinson has two more years on his deal after this one, the last year of his deal has only $9 million guaranteed. It really seems like the Trail Blazers are looking to find a way to trade Tyler Herro to a third team (for picks) or find a miracle offer that gives them a chance to deny the Heat. This recent report confirms that.