Remember Damian Lillard's trade request from the Portland Trail Blazers? Yeah, the one that happened roughly two-and-a-half months ago? Well, nothing has happened about that since.

There's no doubt Lillard's preference is to be traded to the Miami Heat. However, no substantive talks between the Blazers and Heat have taken place as 2023-24 fast approaches, let alone the blockbuster trade Lillard so desires. But as time goes by, a deal could be on the horizon sooner than later. As the famous saying goes, deadlines spur action.

Training camp across the NBA begins in roughly two weeks. It would benefit neither Lillard nor Portland for him to be in Rip City once the season officially tips off. Lillard wants to win, and the Blazers are ill-equipped to fulfill those wishes as currently constituted. They also have young, burgeoning guards such as Scoot Henderson, Shaedon Sharpe and Anfernee Simons, all of whom need precious on-ball reps to foster individual development and as much court time together as possible to coalesce.

Maybe there's a deal between the Heat and Blazers that can get done sooner rather than later. ESPN's Tim Bontemps laid out the framework of a potential Lillard-to-Miami trade on Thursday. How much sense does it make for both sides?

Miami Heat acquire: Damian Lillard and Jusuf Nurkic

Of course, bringing in Lillard and Nurkic would be a coup for the Heat. Lillard provides exactly what Miami lacked in the postseason: A guard who can not only create off the bounce and bury teams with in ball-screens, but also spread the floor while Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo do their thing. The Heat's spacing on possessions involving Butler and Adebayo was clunky throughout the playoffs, especially during the NBA Finals.

Miami just didn't have anyone who could consistently make defenses pay as a pull-up or spot-up shooter. Kyle Lowry and Gabe Vincent were able to do so in stretches, but that isn't Butler's game. He loves to live in the mid-range, knifing his way to the rim. Adebayo isn't a natural scorer, either, but is a great finisher and facilitator as a roll man. Adebayo could be Lillard's version of Draymond Green, the type of dynamic pick-and-roll playmaking partner he's never had in Portland.

Nurkic isn't just a throw-in, either. The Heat were barely able to give Adebayo rest during the playoffs. Nurkic would be the best backup center Miami has had in a while. Couple that with his pre-existing chemistry with Lillard, and he'd Nurkic would make a great addition in Miami.

Grade: A

Portland Trail Blazers acquire: Tyler Herro, Kyle Lowry, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Nikola Jovic, 2027 and 2029 first-round picks, 2028 and 2030 first-round pick swaps

The Trail Blazers are starting over. Any roster overlap following Lillard's seemingly inevitable exit doesn't really matter.

They don't need Herro, but they can also find a different home for him after completing a trade with the Heat. It's also worth pointing that Herro isn't some scrub. The former Sixth Man of the Year has put up consecutive seasons averaging over 20 points and four assists per game with an effective field goal percentage of 52.5% or better. Herro is good.

Jaquez showed plenty of promise during his brief Summer League stint, boasting a versatile, polished game heading into his rookie season. Nikola Jovic also looked great in Las Vegas, not to mention representing Serbia at the FIBA World Cup. These players aren't just nothing. Not only are Jaquez and Jovic legitimate prospects, they're the type of versatile forwards Portland largely failed to put next to Lillard over the past decade

Taking on Herro's $30 million per year contract isn't great, but the Blazers also shed the monster contract they owe Lillard into his late 30s and get off Nurkic's over-priced deal, too.

Lastly, this proposed framework provides Portland with two unprotected first-round picks and two unprotected first-round pick swaps—incredibly valuable assets even from a notoriously stable franchise like Miami. No, the Heat have rarely bottomed out under Pat Riley's reign. But they did end up with the second overall pick in 2007 and began the 2015-16 season 11-30 before finishing 41-41. Those first-round picks would convey to the Blazers when both Lillard and Butler are in their late 30s.

Don't buy into the notion Miami doesn't have a viable trade package for Lillard. This framework would be a great trade for the Blazers, too.

Grade: A