Damian Lillard is considered by many to be one of the best point guards of this generation. Despite having a fair share of individual accolades and success, Dame has been unable to carry his team, the Portland Trail Blazers, through the Western Conference and to an NBA title.
We live in an era where it is growing increasingly common for players to demand trades if they are unsatisfied with the team or the management. Therefore, Lillard can request a trade. Especially considering that his team is not even going to be making the play-in tournament this year and seem to be removed from contention.
That said, let us take a closer look at Damian Lillard’s situation with the Portland Trail Blazers and whether he plans to leave the team he has remained loyal to so far in his career.
Damian Lillard has not requested a trade from the Portland Trail Blazers so far
Despite all the moves we have seen superstars make across the league, Lillard has remained loyal to the Blazers and is yet to demand a trade and take his talents elsewhere. This is quite impressive and speaks to his commitment considering that he is 11th year in the league.
Although Dame has been playing at an elite level for his team, they have only made the Western Conference Finals once and were easily eliminated by the Golden State Warriors. On other occasions, they have lost in either the first or second round of the playoffs.
A certain amount of blame should be placed on the Trail Blazers. After all, the franchise hasn’t given him a second star or a talented enough roster to consistently make deep postseason pushes. They traded away CJ McCollum to the New Orleans Pelicans and have not brought in any real star talent in return.
Lillard has made it clear that he is against this era of ring chasing and constantly switching teams. He is happy in Portland and is yet to change his mind about leaving. Nonetheless, let us take a look at some possible options for Dame if he decides to leave.
Which NBA teams would be interested in acquiring Damian Lillard?
Even though Dame is currently making around $42 million a year and is on a 4 years $176 contract, it is quite possible for him to finally get fed up with his situation in Portland and demand a trade to a competing team. While he would be an expensive contract to take on, several teams would gladly create a package attractive enough to convince the Blazers to part with Dame.
The Los Angeles Lakers are still frontrunners in trade talks when it comes to Lillard. They decided to give up on Patrick Beverly and Russell Westbrook and signed on D’Angelo Russell. If this movement turns into a failure for the Lakers, they can make a move for Dame. After all, having shooters around LeBron has always been a recipe for success and Lillard is considered one of the best shooters in this generation of NBA players.
Another team that could make a move for Lillard and the Philadelphia 76ers. They are currently trying to compete with a combination of Joel Embiid and James Harden. If this duo is unable to find success, the 76ers could find a way to package Harden and a few other players in a deal for Dame. Since Lillard is younger than Harden and is closer to Embiid’s age, this also gives the 76ers a larger window for winning a title.
These are only two among many other suitors for Damian Lillard. Any team like the Nuggets or the Bucks with a star big man would also be interested in adding Lillard to the squad. In any case, all of this is hypothetical until Dame requests a trade or the Blazers decide to head in another direction.