The point guard market is shaping up to be quite the doozy this offseason. Days after The Athletic’s Shams Charania reported that the Philadelphia 76ers have “opened up trade conversations” surrounding Ben Simmons, the three-time All-Star now looks to be accompanied on the trade market by one of the NBA’s most lethal scoring threats.
Per Henry Abbott of True Hoop, Portland Trail Blazers standout Damian Lillard will request a trade out of Portland in the “days to come.”
If Lillard is indeed up for grabs, there will undoubtedly be a plethora of teams lining up in hopes of yielding the services of the six-time All-Star. The aforementioned Sixers, New York Knicks and Golden State Warriors have all been floated as prominent landing spots for the point guard, via Real GM. However, as Sports Illustrated’s Chris Mannix highlighted in an interview with WEEI’s Tanguay and Hart back in June, it may very well be the Boston Celtics who possess the best bargaining chip in a potential deal involving Lillard.
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Celtics in ‘Good Position’ to Make a Run at Lillard
“You could put Jaylen Brown as the centerpiece of a deal that would include all the young guys on your roster plus future draft picks as well,” Mannix said. “So I think it’s possible. If Portland shops him, Boston is going to be in a good position. If you look around, Bradley Beal is not going to go to Portland because he’s not going to re-sign there. You have to get guys to Portland that are on long-term contracts, and Jaylen Brown is one of those young guys, 24 years old, that would fit that bill.”
It also likely doesn’t hurt Boston’s case that star forward Jayson Tatum is currently playing alongside Lillard as a member of the U.S. Olympic Men’s Basketball Team — a scenario that may not have occurred had it not been for an extra nudge from Tatum. According to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, the Celtics’ franchise cornerstone played a part in convincing Lillard to commit to the Tokyo Olympics.
Lillard was also in communication with Boston Celtics wing Jayson Tatum, who put off his decision on Team USA for some time after the season ended to evaluate his offseason priorities. Tatum was on the 2019 World Cup team that finished a disappointing seventh, in part because Tatum sprained his ankle in pool play.
When it was clear how the team was shaping up, Tatum’s uncertainty faded and he committed, sources said.
Tatum and Lillard haven’t been the only two in their respective families to join forces for Team USA. Their children have also been kicking it together. Tatum’s son, Duece, was seen getting a play session in with Lillard’s son, as well as Bradley Beal’s children in Las Vegas during a pre-Tokyo Olympics scrimmage (h/t to Reddit user /ShampooMonK).
Jayson Tatum’s son, Bradley Beal’s sons, and Dame’s son all playing with toy cars together from bostonceltics
The Writing Has Been on the Wall
Of course, news of the 31-year-old wanting out shouldn’t come as much of a surprise for those following the Lillard-Blazers saga that has unfolded in front of our eyes in recent months. The fallout from Portland’s head coaching search, as well as their inability to build a true contender around Lillard, has seemingly nicked the veteran’s undying loyalty to the franchise that selected him sixth overall a near-decade ago.
Following Portland’s first-round exit from the playoffs — their fifth first-round exit over the last seven seasons — the team parted ways with long-time coach Terry Stotts. With a vacancy at the helm, Lillard publically endorsed both Billups and eventual Dallas Mavericks hire, Jason Kidd, for the gig. The Blazers ultimately sided with the former as their choice, hiring Billups despite a sexual assault allegation from 1997 resurfacing during the process. Lillard admitted on Twitter that he wasn’t aware of the allegations against Billups prior to endorsing the former Finals MVP. Still, that didn’t stop the loads of backlash he received for backing the new hire.
Just one day after Lillard’s tweet, Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports hinted at the possibility of the Oakland native’s nine-year run with the Blazers possibly coming to an end.
Lillard has remained loyal to Portland in large part due to the tremendous fan base. But over the last few days, he’s seen some of those same fans attacking him on social media for a pending coaching hire he played no part in consummating, sources said.
Portland is currently in negotiations to make Los Angeles Clippers assistant coach Chauncey Billups its next head coach.
The coaching search was conducted by Neil Olshey, the team’s president of basketball operations. None of the candidates who were interviewed were from suggestions from Lillard, sources said.
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