NBA superstar Damian Lillard will be playing for a new team this upcoming season. According to ESPN, the Portland Trail Blazers are trading Lillard to the Milwaukee Bucks as part of a three-team deal that also includes the Phoenix Suns. Portland will receive Jrue Holiday, Deandre Ayton, Toumani Camara, Milwaukee’s 2029 unprotected first-round draft pick and unprotected Milwaukee swap rights in 2028 and 2030. The Suns will receive Grayson Allen, Nassir Little, Keon Johnson and Jusuf Nurkic.
The reported deal comes months after Lillard requested a trade from the Trail Blazers after being with the team for 11 seasons. Shortly after the deal was reported, Lillard went to social media to confirm he was heading to the Bucks. “The casuals won’t be addressed but the trailblazers fans and city of Portland that I love truly will be … and they will be addressed truthfully,” Lillard wrote. “Stay tunedExcited for my next chapter!”
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Lillard, 33, was selected by the Trail Blazers No. 6 overall in the 2012 NBA Draft. In his 11 seasons with the team, Lillard has been selected to the All-Star team seven times, named to the All-NBA Team seven times, named Rookie of the Year in 2013, won the Teammate of the Year Award in 2021 and is a member of the NBA 75th Anniversary Team. This past season, Lillard averaged a career-high 32.2 points and 7.3 assists per game.
In an interview with Andscape in August, Lillard talked about how he will stay rooted in Portland no matter what his future holds. “I love the city of Portland,” Lillard said. “Every initiative that I’ve started, I’ll continue and I’ll finish regardless of anything. The love will be that because the way I’ve said I feel about Portland is how I feel about Portland. I say what I mean and I mean what I say. It’s been fine. It’s been what it’s always been … [Portland-area residents] just tell me they love me. That’s literally what they say. ‘Dame, we love you. We thank you for everything.’ That’s the dialogue. It’s pretty simple and to the point.”
Lillard will now be playing with another NBA superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo. During his time with the Bucks, Antetokounmpo has been named an All-Star seven times, named an All-NBA player seven times, won the NBA MVP award twice and led the Bucks to an NBA Championship in 2021.
