Portland Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard has been in the media constantly over the last couple of months, with trade rumors continuing to swirl around him. The latest rumblings came from Henry Abbott of True Hoops, who even said that Lillard would be willing to forgo paychecks in order to force a trade to a contender.
Of course, Damian Lillard was asked about that during a Team USA media session on Thursday. By no surprise, he put Abbott on blast:
At this point, it just seems like words are just being put in Dame's mouth. He clarified that he's never once said anything about giving up part of his salary nor request a trade from the Blazers. Lillard and Portland seem to be very transparent and always in contact, which makes one think that all of these rumors are just straight nonsense.
However, it's no secret that Damian Lillard needs more pieces around him in order to compete for a title with the Blazers. After all, he is the face of this franchise and one of the brightest superstars in the game. But, it's not entirely out of the question that Portland would take a huge haul in return for Dame because at this moment in time, they simply aren't close to being a legitimate contender.
Nonetheless, this Damian Lillard situation has been the talk of the NBA offseason. It will be interesting to see if something materializes of these trade talks.