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After the Portland Trail Blazers drafted Scoot Henderson with the No. 3 overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, the attention shifted to Damian Lillard and what he's going to do in Portland.
For those unaware, it has been long rumored that Lillard could ask for a trade away if the Blazers end up using their No. 3 pick to bring in a rookie. After all, it could be taken as a signal that Portland is far from being a title contender. It should also be noted that the team tried to package the pick along with Anfernee Simons in hopes of bringing in a star-caliber player to pair up with Dame, though obviously to no avail.
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If Lillard ends up asking for a move away from the Blazers, plenty of suitors are expected to line up for his services.
However, those teams thinking that he'll make a decision about his future really soon shouldn't have their hopes up. According to the latest rumors, Lillard is going to wait and see what the team will do in free agency before making an assessment about his situation.
“I'm told the timeline for when the future will land with Damian Lillard likely extends now between tonight and the start of free agency and into free agency,” Shams Charania of The Athletic said of Lillard and his plans, via RealGM.
Bleacher Report's Chris Haynes, who's close with Lillard, later reported after the draft that Lillard hasn't had “any recent communication” with Portland about the draft, free agency or his future.
The Blazers have recently shut down the trade inquiries about Lillard, so that at least signifies they want to build around him and field a contender in the 2023-24 season. So far, though, Portland has yet to really make a significant step in that direction.
