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Damian Lillard is dealing with trade rumors once again, a seemingly common occurrence for the Portland Trail Blazers star. There are many analysts, such as Stephen A. Smith, who believe Lillard should leave Portland. Lillard's former teammate CJ McCollum recently shared his thoughts on the situation, per ESPN's First Take.
“The market will dictate what happens here,” McCollum said on First Take. “If I was a betting man, I would say this is the last that we've seen of him [in Portland].”
Lillard's loyalty to the Blazers has been admirable. In the end, though, he wants to win. If Portland is unable to develop a winning team around Lillard, a trade could be on the horizon.
It seems unlikely that Lillard will request a trade at the moment. That could change depending on how the NBA Draft and free agency go for Portland.
Damian Lillard is still one of the best players in the NBA. Across 58 games during the 2022-23 campaign, the Blazers' guard averaged 32.2 points per game which was the highest scoring average of his career. He shot 46.3 percent from the field and 37.1 percent from beyond the arc. Additionally, Lillard dished out 7.3 assists and recorded 4.8 rebounds per contest.
If Lillard were to seek a trade, the Blazers wouldn't have much trouble finding a landing destination for him. There are no shortage of teams around the NBA that could use a superstar point guard like Lillard, especially given his impressive leadership ability. The Miami Heat and Brooklyn Nets are just a couple of teams that could make sense for him.
CJ McCollum thinks we may have already seen Damian Lillard's final game with the Blazers. For now, nothing is guaranteed. We will provide updates on Lillard and Portland as they are made available.