Damian Lillard to the Milwaukee Bucks was a shellshocker of a deal that nobody expected to fall through. Since the start of July, the 7x All-Star was determined to be sent to South Beach. Over the summer, there were several sources reporting various offers the Miami Heat had given the Portland Trail Blazers. As every day passed by, it was very apparent that the Heat were the only ones making an effort. But why?
“My agent called me he said ‘[Trail Blazers] traded you to [the Bucks]’… My first thought was like everything I was leaving behind… This is where I’m supposed to be right here. It’s time to win.”
—Damian Lillard
(via @Bucks) pic.twitter.com/veps9hdMKl
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) October 19, 2023
Joe Cronin, the Blazers‘ General Manager stated that he wanted to wait for the right deal to come by. But the right deal was never offered by Miami. Cronin had no interest in what the Heat had to offer. The Blazers simply wanted a match for Lillard’s worth. Having spent 11 season with them, he transitioned into one of the greatest point guards of all time. Dame is also one of the best scorers and three-point shooters as well. Cronin wanted nothing less in return.
Eventually, the Heat ran out of options and decided to wait for the Blazers to comply to something. Rather than acquiring help from other teams or re-evaluating trade packages, they chose to wait. But the Blazers didn’t want to rely on the Heat and they eventually went dead silent. The Bucks swooped in from nowhere and helped facilitate a three-team trade involving the Phoenix Suns. Jrue Holiday was traded along with a 2029 first-rounder to Portland, and Grayson Allen was sent to Phoenix.
Damian Lillard let go of the idea of joining Jimmy Butler and the Heat
Sam Amick of The Athletic revealed a few details regarding the scenes within the Blazers organization. Damian Lillard told Amick, “It was anything to go against what I would have wanted. That part was irritating. Just based off how it was happening, I knew (it wouldn’t be Miami)…(The Blazers) hadn’t talked to Miami. So once it started happening like that, then I started hearing about all these other random teams, I was like, ‘I’m probably not going to Miami.’ So I wasn’t holding on to that too (much).”
Damian Lillard says the Blazers went against everything he wanted
“It was anything to go against what I would have wanted. That part was irritating. Just based off how it was happening, I knew (it wouldn’t be Miami)…(The Blazers) hadn’t talked to Miami. So once it started… pic.twitter.com/bzH65QXSNw
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) October 23, 2023
Joe Cronin had severed communication between the Blazers and Heat, basically giving other teams the green light to swoop in. Damian Lillard also was aware about this since the Blazers also stopped communicating with his agent, Aaron Goodwin. This was what led to Lillard forgoing the idea of joining Jimmy Butler. Toward the end of September, the Bucks went into full-fledged business mode and worked out a deal within a matter of few days.
The Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo also had no idea of the trade. He told The Athletic that he had nothing to do with the deal as he only found out while he lifting weights at the gym after it had happened. He added that the comments regarding his future with the Bucks weren’t made to influence this trade. Milwaukee simply wanted to confirm their interest to keep him happy.