ESPN NBA insider Brian Windhorst revealed that the Miami Heat and Portland Trail Blazers are not talking about a Damian Lillard trade at this time.
The Heat appear unlikely to budge on what they are willing to give up for Lillard, who was an All-NBA selection in the 2022-23 season.
The seven-time All-Star averaged 32.
2 points and 7.
3 assists per game while shooting 46.
3% from the field and 37.
1% from beyond last season.
Windhorst’s information lines up with an August report that Portland was not interested in making a deal with Miami at the time for Lillard.
The Blazers will certainly be in rebuilding mode if they trade Lillard because they have young players like guards Scoot Henderson, Shaedon Sharpe and Anfernee Simons that they can build around.
Miami’s best trade asset in a potential Lillard deal could be former Sixth Man of the Year Tyler Herro, but the Blazers may not be willing to take on Herro’s contract, especially since he also plays the role of guard.
If that’s the case, Miami would have to redirect Herro to a third team as part of a possible Lillard trade.
The Blazers have some leverage because Lillard is under contract beyond the 2023-24 season.
That means they could keep Lillard and let him sit out until they find a deal they deem worthy of moving him.
Miami made several moves this offseason, adding guard Josh Richardson to the roster, but they also lost shooter Max Strus and guard Gabe Vincent in free agency.
Without these two players, the Heat will have a thinner rotation than they might like as the 2023-24 season quickly approaches.
However, Miami needs to keep its options open for Lillard, and committing long-term money to Strus or Vincent would make a trade even harder to complete.
An NBA insider recently predicted that Lillard would join the Heat before training camp.
For now, though, it appears Miami is in a waiting game with the Blazers at this point in the season.