LAS VEGAS (AP) — Damian Lillard wants to be traded to the Miami Heat. The Portland Trail Blazers know this has yet to give up hope that the seven-time All-Star will change his mind.
Whether he does or not, the Blazers insist they are in no rush.
General Manager Joe Cronin, at the press conference where the team unveiled its new five-year, $160 million contract with Jerami Grant, spoke at length about the impasse with Lillard. He did not provide any details about the talks – not the negotiation publicly – and revealed that he had not spoken to him Lillard has since requested the cornerstone of the franchise to be traded.
“We’re going to be patient,” Cronin said Monday. “We’ll do what’s best for our team. We’ll see, you know, how this lands. And if it takes months, it will take months.”
Lillard’s trade request became publicly known on July 1, the first full day of free agency in the NBA. After the Blazers revealed that Lillard – who spent all 11 of his seasons in Portland – asked, Agent Aaron Goodwin confirmed days later That seven-time All-NBA selection wants to go to Miami.
“The lady’s position will not change,” Goodwin told the Associated Press last week. “This whole situation was about building a chance for Portland to win or giving him another chance he wanted, which is Miami.”
The whole thing is complicated on so many levels – that the trade request has become public, that Lillard only wants to be traded to Miami (he doesn’t have a non-trade clause, and Portland is under no obligation to fulfill that request), that he’s beloved as a Portland great and that he’s not on the list simply means That the team probably won’t have enough to truly compete in the loaded Western Conference.
“As a team, we always hope you have more options,” Cronin said. “To have limited options like that, I wouldn’t call it frustrating, but it probably prevents you from getting the best return. So, it’s something we have to work through.”
And in his eyes, there was still hope that Lillard might change his mind — though there was no sign of that happening.
“I haven’t given up hope, just because I understand that this league is complicated and things change very quickly sometimes,” Cronin said.
The Blazers have a core of young talent — Anfernee Simons just turned 24, Shaedon Sharpe is entering his second season after being the No. 7 pick in 2022, and point guard Scoot Henderson has entered the league as the No. 3 pick in this draft. . Cronin said he understands why Lillard looks at the Blazers, as they are currently built, and feels there is no clear path to title contention next season.
“I can see why the lady would look at him and say, ‘Well, this is not a chance to win now, or at least a chance to win now some other place,’” Cronin said. “So, in that regard, I understand and respect his position, and it makes sense to me why He wanted to go somewhere else.”
But Cronin also thinks great days are coming for Simmons, Sharp and Henderson.
“These guys are going to win very soon in this league,” said Cronin.
Lillard is coming off a season in which he averaged 32.2 points with the Trail Blazers. He’s a member of the NBA’s 75th Anniversary Team, but hasn’t come close to winning a title in his 11 seasons in the league.
He met with Portland several times, and requested a roster promotion to the point where he could compete for the championship. But those efforts did not appeal to Lillard. And now, Trade Monitor is on.
“It’s just hard. How do you replace Damian Lillard? Who is the better-than-a-lady guy out there on the market?” Cronin said. “No team more than us knows what that market looks like. We’ve been trying for 18 months to find a Dame equivalent in another position or someone who’s 80% of Dame, even. So, that’s the challenge and that’s why we have to keep working.”
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