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Figuring out where Portland Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard lands in a trade is a two-part exercise.
To whom should the Blazers trade him?
Which team will he actually play for in 2023-24?
The answer isn’t − or at least doesn’t need to be − identical. But it could also be the same.
Lillard has a specific destination in mind, but the Blazers are looking for best return in a trade. Those two aren’t equal right now. The Blazers − at least at this point − don’t want to trade Lillard to his preferred team if that isn’t the best deal for them.
But Portland has to consider the most ideal move may not present itself if another team is unwilling to acquire a player unhappy with a trade. Blazers general manager Joe Cronin is in a precarious position and needs premium value in return for a player of Lillard’s caliber. On Monday at the NBA’s Summer League in Las Vegas, Cronin said he will take his time searching for the right deal.
“If it takes months, it takes months,” he said.
Let’s take a look at potential landing spots for Lillard, the seven-time All-NBA selection:
Miami Heat
Lillard wants to play for the Heat (and only the Heat, it appears), alongside Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo and for team president Pat Riley and coach Erik Spoelstra.
Lillard would give Miami the scoring and playmaking it desperately needed at certain times in the playoffs, especially against Denver in the NBA Finals.
The Heat have made the Finals twice in the past four seasons − in the 2020 Orlando bubble and this past season. They have one of the best coaches in Spoelstra and one of the best front offices led by Riley, Andy Elisburg and Adam Simon.
Not only does Lillard want this trade to happen, the Heat want it, too.
Not so simple. What the Heat have to offer doesn’t impress the Blazers today. Because of NBA rules, the Heat don’t have first-round picks available to trade until 2028 and 2030. The deal is built around those picks and Miami’s Tyler Herro. Without a third or fourth team getting involved − and that’s a possibility − Portland has nothing but apathetic shrugs.
And yet, the Heat’s offer might just be the best one when it comes time to trade Lillard.
Brooklyn Nets
On a Showtime podcast in June, Lillard said Brooklyn was a potential spot for him, playing alongside Mikal Bridges. That doesn’t appear to be the case today, however, the Nets have a far more attractive trade package for the Blazers than the Heat.
The Nets acquired four first-round picks (2023, 2025, 2027 and 2029) from the Phoenix Suns when they dealt Kevin Durant to Phoenix in February.
Having just traded Durant and Kyrie Irving because they wanted out, the Nets aren’t looking for a repeat situation with Lillard. Even though they have attractive assets, it doesn’t mean they want to use them in a Lillard trade, and that’s a dilemma facing several teams.
Los Angeles Clippers
The Clippers don’t have many years left with the Kawhi Leonard-Paul George pairing, and if they wanted to make a go for it one last time with another All-Star addition, Lillard is a great option. But, if they want to keep Leonard and/or George, the Clippers’ trade options are limited because they can’t put together a trade package that includes a first-round pick before 2028. And Leonard and George aren’t exactly the players Portland wants in a youthful rebuild even if the Clippers were willing to trade one of those players.
Utah Jazz
Like Brooklyn, the Jazz have appealing draft picks, and like the Oklahoma City Thunder, it’s hard to keep up with all the first-round draft picks the Jazz have stockpiled. They just had three first-round picks in the June draft and have multiple future first-round picks from Minnesota, Cleveland and the Los Angeles Lakers, including three first-rounders in 2025, four in 2027 and two in 2028.
Whether it’s a deal with Portland or another team, the Jazz are in position to make trades that fast-track their rebuild.
Boston Celtics
The Celtics have draft picks, and they are a team always looking to improve. But with two All-NBA perimeter players in Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, who appears headed to a massive extension with Boston, Lillard doesn’t make much sense.
Philadelphia 76ers
The Sixers are in an odd spot in regards to James Harden who opted into the final year of his contract for 2023-24 with the expectation the Sixers will look to trade him. But Philadelphia doesn’t have to do that and may not. Keeping Harden for one more season with Joel Embiid might be the best option. The Sixers are also lacking the first-round picks that get the Blazers’ attention.
New Orleans Pelicans
The Pelicans have their own first-round picks for the next seven drafts (through 2030) and first-round picks from the Los Angeles Lakers in 2024 or 2025 and at least one first-round pick from Milwaukee.
Reunite Lillard with CJ McCollum?
Toronto Raptors
The Raptors can’t trade one of their first-round picks until 2027, and while they have valuable players who teams covet (Pascal Siakam, OG Anunoby), a Lillard trade doesn’t line up with either team’s ambitions.
Other teams
Given the rosters, timelines and situations of remaining teams, there aren’t many other places for Lillard. But a third or fourth team could get involved to facilitate a trade that helps Lillard and the Blazers get what they want.
Follow NBA reporter Jeff Zillgitt on Twitter @JeffZillgitt
