NBA rumors: Up until this point, neither the Miami Heat nor the Portland Trail Blazers want to budge. Damian Lillard has made his desire to leave Portland abundantly clear, but as it turns out, both the Heat and the Blazers have yet to find an arrangement that will finally grant Dame’s wish.
NBA Rumors: Imagining a Four-Team Blockbuster Trade Deal Centered Around Damian Lillard
Andy Bailey of Bleacher Report has now proposed an expanded trade scenario wherein the Philadelphia 76ers and the Chicago Bulls also get involved. Since the Heat and the Blazers can’t seem to find common ground, perhaps they will need the help of two other teams to finally get this done.
Here are the details of Bailey’s hypothetical four-team blockbuster trade:
Portland Trail Blazers Receive: James Harden’s expiring contract (can be flipped later), Kyle Lowry’s expiring contract, Jaime Jacquez, Nikola Jović, a 2028 first-round pick from Miami, a 2030 first-round pick from Miami and a 2030 second-round pick from Chicago
Miami Heat Receive: Damian Lillard, Jusuf Nurkić, a 2029 second-round pick from Philadelphia and a 2028 second-round pick from Chicago
Philadelphia 76ers Receive: Zach LaVine, Tyler Herro and a 2029 second-round pick from Portland
Chicago Bulls Receive: Tobias Harris’ expiring contract, Caleb Martin, Keon Johnson, a 2029 first-round pick swap with the 76ers and a 2030 first-round pick from Philadelphia
The most important thing here is that the Heat finally land Damian Lillard. They get Jusuf Nurkic in the deal too, allowing them to pair Bam Adebayo with a natural center in a revamped frontcourt. For their part, the Blazers get former MVP James Harden, while also acquiring the future assets they have been demanding.
In this deal, the Sixers also get two explosive scorers in Zach LaVine and Tyler Herro, making them arguably an even bigger threat in the East than they were with Harden in the mix. As for the Bulls, parting ways with Zach LaVine would be an indication of their imminent rebuild.
NBA Rumors: Bucks Lose a Challenger in Central Division
This proposed blockbuster deal will have a significant impact on the Milwaukee Bucks and their championship aspirations in 2023-24. You could argue that both the Heat and the Sixers get better from this deal. At the same time, however, the Bucks also lose a noteworthy challenger in the Central Division as the Bulls finally embrace a rebuild. If they part ways with Lavine, then it probably won’t be long before they move on from DeMar DeRozan and Nikola Vucevic as well in favor of a collection of future assets.
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