On September 27th, 2023, Damian Lillard's trade request was granted after spending his career in a place where he gave his all, and his ownership and management gave him absolutely nothing in return. Lillard was traded to the Bucks in a 3 team deal which would also involve the Phoenix Suns receiving Jusuf Nurkic, Nassir Little, Keon Johnson, and Grayson Allen. The Blazers would receive Deandre Ayton, Jrue Holiday (Later traded for robert Williams, Malcolm Brogdon and picks).
The trade was finalized after NBA attorneys reviewed and approved the deal. Damian Lillard expressed his excitement for his next chapter in a message on "X" (formerly Twitter). He mentioned that he'll address the Trail Blazers' fans and the city of Portland emphasizing his love for them.
Damian Lillard had been seeking roster upgrades in Portland to compete for a championship, but his request was not met to his satisfaction, leading to his trade request. Portland all but sealed the deal this off- season when they selected guard Scoot Henderson 3rd overall in the draft. Even though the consensus was that if Portland landed a top pick, they would end up trading that pick in order to get Dame some help. Well the blazers did what was best for them and took the easy way out by drafting Scoot and saving Dame from a lifetime of mediocre basketball play.
Lillard's impressive NBA career includes multiple All-NBA selections, a place on the NBA's 75th Anniversary Team, and numerous scoring milestones. However, he is still seeking an NBA championship.
Dame’s best shot at winning his long gloried NBA championship begins now. On his new Bucks team, we see a top 2 player in the NBA right now in Giannis, and great supporting pieces in Kris Middelton, Brook Lopez, Bobby Portis, and more solid role players that fit the criteria of a championship level team.
This summer, we saw multiple reports of Giannis putting pressure on the bucs front office and his desire to win and if those desires were not met, He would ultimately end up looking elsewhere to make his championship expectations met.
Well, with this trade for Lillard, it is evident that the Milwaukee front office took this claim to heart by acquiring the star guard Lillard. This season will be a very fun and entertaining watch, especially for bucks fans. Let’s see how it plays out.
Contributor: Jacob Mathews (@jacob9302)
Editor: Josh Bhagratie (@jshyb_)