Dame wants out of Rip City. Damian Lillard requested that the Portland Trail Blazers trade him and the New York Knicks, Los Angeles Lakers, Miami Heat, Philadelphia 76ers, and Golden State Warriors are front runners to land Dame. The Knicks are the betting favorite to acquire Lillard in a trade at +200 odds, according to a prop bet released by PointsBet.
The Philadelphia 76ers were linked with the Blazers as a potential trade partner for Ben Simmons. CJ McCollum was originally mentioned in Simmons trade rumors, but now that Lillard is on the trade, the Blazers have two potential stars to swap for Simmons. The 76ers, at +250 odds to land Lillard, are the second highest team on the prop betting board at PointsBet.
| DAMIAN LILLARD TRADE NEXT TEAM ODDS |
- New York Knicks +200
- Philadelphia 76ers +250
- Miami Heat +300
- Golden State Warriors +400
- LA Lakers +500
- LA Clippers +600
- Boston Celtics +900
- OKC Thunder +1000
- Toronto Raptors +1000
The Miami Heat gambled on Victor Oladipo and lost. Oladipo, who was traded twice last season before arriving at South Beach, suffered an injury after joining the Heat. The Heat could package Tyler Herro or Duncan Robinson plus draft picks to grab Lillard in a trade with the Blazers. A backcourt with Jimmy Butler and Lillard sounds too good to be true. The Heat are +300 odds to acquire Lillard in a trade with the Blazers.
Dame Favorites: Knicks and MSG
Lillard mentioned he’d like to play for a contender. The Knicks are not exactly contender material, then again, did anyone expect they’d secure the #4 seed in the Eastern Conference during a rebuild season?
Lillard is the exact type of players the Knicks lacked during their first-round exit against the Atlanta Hawks. The Knicks needed a secondary scorer that’s not Randle.
Lillard also indicated that he’d like to play for the Knicks someday because Madison Square Garden is his favorite venue outside of Portland. Dame at MSG sounds like the hottest ticket in town.
The Knicks have a combination of draft picks and young players to offer the Blazers in a trade for Lillard. That includes last year’s first round draft picks — Immanuel Quickley and Obi Toppin — and previous first rounder Kevin Knox.
Heck, even RJ Barrett is on the table. Barret is the former #3 pick from the 2019 NBA Draft, but the Knicks will ship him to Rip City of that means they can make Gotham Dame a reality.
West Coast Dame: Lakers and Warriors
The Splash Brothers — Klay Thompson and Steph Curry — could add a third hombre to the mix. How about the Triple Splash Brothers? Or Splash Cubed? If the Warriors pull the trigger on a Lillard trade, they’d have the greatest triple threat guard trio in NBA history with Lillard, Curry, and Thompson. The Warriors have a pair of first round draft picks ready to go in the 2021 NBA Draft. They also have last year’s first-rounder big man James Wiseman as trade bait.
If Dame remains on the west coast, the Warriors seem like the right choice and logical fit over the Lakers. After all, Lillard grew up in the Bay Area in Oakland. The Warriors play their home games in downtown San Francisco these days, but that’s as close to home as you’ll get. The Warriors are a great value pick at +400 odds to make a move and trade for Lillard.
The Lakers would love to grab Lillard in a trade to create a Tinsel Town Big 3 with LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and Lillard. The problem is that the Lakers do not have enough draft picks or players on their roster to make the deal worthy for the Blazers. The Lakers leveraged their future in the blockbuster Davis trade with the New Orleans Pelicans. That’s why the Lakers are +1000 odds to score Lillard in a trade.
Dame Long Shots: Clippers, Celtics, Thunder, Raptors
The LA Clippers, Boston Celtics, Oklahoma City Thunder, and Toronto Raptors are also long shots to acquired Dame’s services next season as a high-volume shooting guard.
The Clippers already have Paul George and gave up a hefty price to acquire him from the OKC Thunder. They do not have juicy draft picks to entice Portland, but they could trade George. Yes, the NBA is ruthless. Just weeks after Playoff P stepped up help end the Clippers Curse with Kawhi Leonard out with a torn ACL, he’s being mentioned in trade rumors involving Lillard. Brutal.
The Boston Celtics shook up their coaching staff and front office. Brad Stevens move from the sidelines to the front office when he replace Danny Ainge as general manager. In his first bold move Stevens traded Kemba Walker to the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Celtics need a shooting guard, but would Dame waive his no trade cause for Beantown? Probably not.
The Oklahoma City Thunder have an abundance of first round draft picks coming to them in the next few years, so they have a heavy arsenal of draft capital — plus Walker — to trade if the Blazers want to restock on future picks.
The Toronto Raptors held on to Kyle Lowry instead of trading him to the 76ers or Heat before the deadline. He’s an unrestricted free agent, but if he signs elsewhere, the Raptors need a playmaker. The Raptors are the longest long shot on the board with the Thunder at +1000 odds to snag Lillard in a trade.
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