The Portland Trail Blazers and Damian Lillard have reached a stalemate.
Lillard wants to be traded and play for the Miami Heat, and the Blazers aren’t reportedly interested in compiling with his request.
Needless to say, Lillard is far from happy with that, and even though reports state that he’s still going to show up to training camp and do his job, having a disgruntled star may not be in their best interest.
That’s why Blazers insider Aaron Fentress believes they’ll eventually get a deal done before the start of training camp, as there’s simply no value in having an unhappy player, and it’s not even clear if they’re going to play him (via Dru_Star).
“I believe a deal will get done before camp starts. I don’t buy that they’re gonna bring him in…Dame’s pissed. Dame’s not happy…Do you really wanna bring this guy to training camp if he’s gonna be bitter. I don’t see the value in that…Are you gonna play him?” – @AaronJFentress pic.twitter.com/Jh86yPm2IM
— Dru (@dru_star) September 8, 2023
Lillard urged the Blazers to trade their first-round picks to try and land an All-Star caliber player, and not only did they not comply with that, but they — literally — drafted his replacement in Scoot Henderson.
It makes no sense to have Henderson and Lillard there.
Lillard won’t be able to compete for a spot in the playoffs, and he’ll take touches and shots away from Henderson, who could end up being one of the best players in the league in no time.
Lillard and his camp hurt their leverage by leaking his desire to play for the Heat and the Heat only.
But at the end of the day, the Blazers won’t have any choice but to move on from their franchise player, even if they don’t get the return they think they should get for him.
NEXT: Adrian Wojnarowski Reveals New Deadline For A Damian Lillard Trade
