Talk about a trade that came out of literally nowhere! The Portland Trail Blazers officially traded Damian Lillard… to the Milwaukee Bucks! Despite not even being mentioned in trade talks, Milwaukee swooped in to scoop the star point guard away. Lillard was initially rumored to be joining the Heat, but talks significantly slowed down between both sides.
Now, we might know the reason why a Damian Lillard-Heat trade never materialized. In an insider article for The Athletic, Shams Charania and Sam Amick detailed how this trade materialized. One interesting tidbit that Charania mentioned is the Blazers' initial demand to the Heat for Lillard. Apparently, Portland asked for… Jimmy Butler. What?
“The Blazers and Heat had multiple conversations in July, but the sides never engaged in substantive negotiations, according to those sources. In an initial call, the Blazers asked the Heat for Jimmy Butler or Bam Adebayo. The Heat came to believe that the Blazers had little to no interest in engaging in a deal with them, and as much as Lillard and Goodwin wished that the Blazers would attempt to satisfy his wish, Portland refused.”
Well, that's certainly interesting. One of the consistent storylines during this trade saga is that the Blazers seemingly refused to engage with the Heat in trade talks. It seems like that tone was set early on when they asked for Butler. To Miami, it must've felt like Portland wasn't taking negotiations seriously if they believed that they would trade Butler for Lillard.
Regardless, what's done is done. Portland felt like they couldn't get a good deal from the Heat (a valid point, to be fair). The Bucks, sensing a chance to appease the malcontent from Giannis Antetokounmpo, went and talked to the Blazers about Damian Lillard. Now, with some help from the Phoenix Suns, Lillard will be donning the green and black of the Bucks in 2023.