The Portland Trail Blazers have made a move that will certainly please Damian Lillard, but it might not be enough to keep him with the team.
This off-season, Lillard is being heavily linked with a move away from the team he has spent the last 11 years with, with the Miami Heat reportedly interested in a trade.
He is said to be disappointed in how the Trial Blazers' 2023 draft played out, with him reportedly hoping to see the team trade the pick for a star player. But instead, they stayed at number three and drafted Scoot Henderson - a pure point guard who could be Lillard's replacement.
Despite this though, Lillard has made it clear that he would be happy to remain in Portland - but he wants the opportunity to win - knowing that he needs fellow star players alongside him.
The Athletic reported that Lillard does have a 'dream scenario' to remain with the team - hoping that they'd sign two players in free agency. The report stated that Lillard wanted to the team to indeed re-sign Grant to a long-term deal, which they had secured on the opening night of free agency.
Coming off the back of another strong season, Grant has resigned with his hometown team on a five-year, $160 million deal. He averaged 20 points and shot 40% from three in a strong showing last year, with Lillard hoping the team extended him.
But the other player who Lillard was said to want to join, is now off the market. The report stated that Draymond Green was an important player to Lillard, however, he has reportedly agreed a deal to remain with the Warriors.
Green had declined a $27.6 million (£21.7m) player option to become an unrestricted free agent in the hopes of securing a long-term deal. That seemed unlikely after the team extended Jordan Poole last off-season, but traded him away for Chris Paul, with the Warriors now looking to contend with a solid starting five once again next season.
For Portland, they'll now hope to do all they can to keep Lillard around, who has openly admitted that he'd like to join the Heat if a trade came about, while also being interested in the Brooklyn Nets.
“Miami, obviously,” said Lillard on ShowTime’s The Last Stand podcast on June 7. “Bam [Adebayo] is my dog for real, but Miami is an obvious one. Brooklyn is another obvious one because Mikal Bridges is my dog too. Both of them have capable rosters."
