(Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images)
Entering the offseason, the Portland Trail Blazers faced the biggest question out of every NBA team: Where would they send Damian Lillard?
Lillard requested a trade after another lottery-bound season and Portland was forced to evaluate where to send their franchise icon.
For months, it felt like they would give in to his demand to send him to the Miami Heat but the proposed packages weren’t enough for them to pull the trigger.
In the past week, several teams began to enter the Lillard sweepstakes and it would be the Milwaukee Bucks that would offer enough to get the All-Star point guard on their team.
The Blazers landed Jrue Holiday in the deal with the Bucks, but then almost immediately flipped him to the Boston Celtics for even more assets.
After the Holiday trade was announced, Portland ended up with a haul of players and assets via Legion Hoops.
So the Blazers turned Damian Lillard into:
Deandre Ayton
Robert Williams
Malcolm Brogdon
Toumani Camara
3 1st-round picks
Two pick swaps
Good or bad haul? pic.twitter.com/pfOBOn7C2x
— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) October 1, 2023
Solid haul!
— JokicBedAh (@RipsAndSlips) October 1, 2023
This crazy
— Tidal League (@TidalLeague) October 1, 2023
Very good haul
— japta (@DubsBetterrrr) October 1, 2023
that’s solid
— Middy Garoppolo (@DylannJabroo) October 1, 2023
On paper, it looks like the Trail Blazers and general manager Joe Cronin did well for themselves as they were able to grab legitimate centers in Deandre Ayton and Robert Williams as well as multiple first-round picks and swaps.
The common knock on any proposed deal with the Heat was the lack of attractive assets, so Portland did the right thing to wait and see what else they could get from other teams.
Trading a superstar like Lillard is never easy and often times that franchise never completely recovers, but at least the Trail Blazers have clarity going into the season and can feasibly focus on their rebuild now.
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