(Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)
Everybody’s keeping an eye on the Portland Trail Blazers right now.
The team is reportedly shutting down all trade inquiries about Damian Lillard, but it seems like divorce is inevitable at this point.
Lillard has been on the record stating that he doesn’t want to play with young players on a rebuilding team, adding that he wants to compete for a championship right now, not in the future.
With that in mind, Brian Windhorst of ESPN reveals that multiple teams are keeping tabs on the situation and getting their offers ready for the All-Star guard.
.@windhorstespn says teams are “preparing their offers” for Damian Lillard
“Anybody who would look at Dame Lillard … Who asked [the Blazers] to go in a different direction and they draft anyway would say to him, ‘It’s time to go.'” pic.twitter.com/z3j9WneyU5
— Get Up (@GetUpESPN) June 22, 2023
Windhorst adds that the Blazers are trying to convince Lillard to stay, but they’re less than likely to be able to put together the kind of competitive squad that’ll make Dame say that he does want to stay there.
Lillard has repeatedly talked about his loyalty to Portland and how much he wants to win in Rip City; he literally does it every time he has the chance to talk, which is pretty much every offseason.
But this back and forth has gone way too far already.
The Blazers owe it to Lillard to set him free; they’re just not going to be able to do right by him with the pieces they have right now, and they have an excellent opportunity to just blow the roster up and rebuild.
They could also get a huge haul in return for Lillard, so this should be a no-brainer by now.
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