It finally happened. After months of speculation, Damian Lillard requested a trade from the Portland Trail Blazers Saturday with the Miami Heat and Brooklyn Nets as his preferred destinations, according to Bleacher Report's Chris Haynes.

https://twitter.com/ChrisBHaynes/status/1675174339019444224

If it were truly a two-team race for Lillard, the Nets would sit firmly in the driver's seat. Brooklyn can offer seven first-round picks compared to two for Miami. That includes an enticing pool of 2027, 2028 and 2029 picks from the Phoenix Suns, Dallas Mavericks, and Philadelphia 76ers. They also have numerous salary-matching contracts in Spencer Dinwiddie, Royce O'Neale, Patty Mills, Dorian Finney-Smith and Ben Simmons.

However, Lillard appears to be focused specifically on Miami, according to Shams Charania.

With the Nets possessing a far better offer, Lillard publicly asking for a trade to the Heat has long been viewed as his quickest route to Miami. Whether Portland will acquiesce to the demand from their franchise player of a decade-plus remains to be seen.

Lillard's interest in joining the Nets has been a point of speculation since his courtside appearance for Game 3 of Brooklyn's first-round series against Philadelphia at Barclays Center. The seven-time All-Star shares a close relationship with Mikal Bridges, who he called “his favorite small forward in the league” during a 2021 interview. Lillard also called Brooklyn an “obvious” trade destination during a recent appearance on Showtime Sports.

However, with Lillard now focused on Miami, the Nets would likely have to substantially increase their offer to land the Blazers star. That could mean four or five first-round picks, a steep price to pay for a 33-year-old who would still leave the team another move away from legitimate contention. Brooklyn has not yet been reported to have interest in a trade since news of the request broke, with ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski pointing to the Heat, 76ers and Clippers.

Brooklyn opened free agency by trading Joe Harris to the Detroit Pistons for salary relief and re-signing Cam Johnson to a four-year, $108 million deal before bringing in Dennis Smith Jr. on a veteran's minimum contract.