For much of the NBA offseason, rumors surrounding a potential trade involving longtime Portland Trail Blazers superstar guard Damian Lillard had been the talk of the league. And after a long wait, Lillard was finally dealt to the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday afternoon in a shocking blockbuster deal. This move caught the attention of the entire NBA world, including the Boston Celtics.

While the Celtics went out and made their own big move for Kristaps Porzingis earlier this offseason, they had likely been fretting about the possibility of Lillard getting dealt to the Miami Heat, which always seemed to be his most likely landing spot. While they managed to avoid that, they now have to deal with the three-headed monster of Lillard, Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Khris Middleton out in Milwaukee.

Despite the fact that the Celtics have literally no involvement in this deal, it is still going to have a massive impact on their success this upcoming season. So with the deals all out in the open now, let's take a look at two immediate thoughts on the Lillard blockbuster from a Celtics perspective and see how this could impact them in the future.

2. The Celtics should absolutely pursue Jrue Holiday from the Portland Trail Blazers

We will actually focus on Lillard in a second, but first, it's probably more important to look at how this deal could literally impact the Celtics roster. As part of the trade, the Bucks sent veteran two-way shooting guard Jrue Holiday to Portland, and it sounds like the Trail Blazers are already working on finding him a trade to a contending team. Of course, one team interested in him is none other than the Celtics.

Holiday is fresh off one another strong season with Milwaukee (19.3 PPG, 7.4 APG, 5.1 RPG, 47.9 FG%, 38.4 3P%), earning the second All-Star and third All-Defensive First Team selections of his career. Holiday is one of the premier perimeter defenders in the NBA who can also hit a ton of shots and initiate offense for his teammates. In terms of a complete all-around guard, there's no one better than Holiday.

From a Celtics perspective, acquiring Holiday would be the final piece of their puzzle. They have a need for playmaking and perimeter defense after trading away Marcus Smart, and reports indicate that Malcolm Brogdon is upset that the Celtics tried to trade him earlier this offseason. Perfect. Ship him and some draft capital to Portland in order to give Boston the most complete starting five in the NBA.

Given the amount of interest Holiday is expected to draw, picking up the veteran guard could require a big package going the other way in return. The good news is that Boston has tons of tradable draft picks that they have been holding onto for a rainy day, and it's worth remembering that they actually gained draft capital from their trade with Porzingis earlier this offseason. It seems like a perfect time to cash in on that draft capital now.

The Bucks have proven they mean business by acquiring Lillard here, and while this deal doesn't necessarily make them better than the C's (yes, you read that right), Boston would be wise to respond to this big move with one of their own. It would be quite a gut punch for Milwaukee to see Holiday land with their top competitor in the Eastern Conference, and it's a move that the Celtics must absolutely look into making now that Portland is trying to move him.

1. Does Damian Lillard make the Bucks better than the Celtics?

Anytime a flashy move like this goes down, fans are going to freak out and immediately label the team that lands the superstar player the next title favorite. We saw it happen last season when Kevin Durant landed with the Phoenix Suns and Kyrie Irving landed with the Dallas Mavericks, and now the same thing is happening with Lillard and the Bucks.

There's no question that Lillard and Antetokounmpo are going to run one of the deadliest two-man games on offense in the entire NBA. After missing most of the 2021-22 season, Lillard put together arguably the best season of his entire career (32.2 PPG, 7.3 APG, 4.8 RPG, 46.3 FG%, 37.1 3P%), and you can bet he is going to have fun playing alongside Antetokounmpo in Milwaukee.

The problem is that the Bucks already thin depth chart just got weaker. They don't have a top perimeter defender in Holiday to match up with opposing guards anymore, and it's safe to say Lillard isn't exactly known for his defense. Milwaukee also sent Grayson Allen to the Suns, who are the real winners of this deal after picking up Allen, Jusuf Nurkic, Nassir Little, and Keon Johnson in exchange for Deandre Ayton and Toumani Camara.

Flashy moves are fun, but it's fair to wonder how much of an improvement the Bucks will see with Lillard. This is no knock on Lillard, as his fit offensively is going to be fantastic with Milwaukee. But in the process of making this move, Middleton, who has a fairly similar style of play as Lillard, gets cast into a smaller role behind Lillard and Antetokounmpo. Middleton is an excellent shot creator with the ball in his hands, but he's undoubtedly going to see the ball less now that Lillard is in town.

Again, strictly from a Celtics perspective, the team has the resources to go toe-to-toe with the Bucks. Derrick White and Brogdon (assuming he stays around) are both strong perimeter defenders who can stick with Lillard, and the C's have had success limiting Antetokounmpo in the past. On the other side of the ball, things just got easier for Boston because Holiday is no longer going to be leading their defensive charge from the front.

Many were quick to rule the Celtics a loser as a result of this deal, and in a sense, they are. But it's not as if they should be completely freaking out over the Bucks getting Lillard; it will take time for this team to mesh, and it's not as if Lillard has proven himself to be wildly durable over the past few years (although, in fairness, the same can be said about Boston's splash landing in Porzingis).

Things got tougher for Boston in some ways, but they have an opportunity to swing the pendulum back in their favor by moving for Holiday. And even then, it's tough to look at their roster and think that they can't match up with the Bucks. It's always tough to see a rival trade for a superstar, but the Celtics are still in a good spot heading into the 2023-24 season.