Damian Lillard wants to leave the Portland Trail Blazers before the 2023-24 NBA season. Specifically, he wants to join the Miami Heat. This should be simple enough, right? If Lillard wants to be in Miami, other teams are unlikely to trade for him.
So, the Heat will send the Blazers Tyler Herro and as much draft capital as they can – done deal. Not so fast. The Blazers reportedly don’t want Herro. With Anfernee Simons and Shaedon Sharpe already on the roster, who could blame them?
With that said, there’s got to be a way to make this work. The Blazers and Heat simply need to find a third team to facilitate a multi-team deal by taking on Herro. Here are three that we think should be in the running.
Brooklyn Nets
This feels like the most obvious choice. The Nets have Ben Simmons. He’s on a bad contract. Meanwhile, they’ve got one of the best collections of draft capital in the NBA.
They also need a guard who can create offense in the half-court. Herro can do that. So, the Nets should spend a couple of their future first-round picks to flip Simmons for Herro.
NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: Damian Lillard, Miami Heat & Brooklyn Nets Updates
That makes sense – in theory. On the other hand, Portland could be apprehensive about taking on Simmons’ contract. If they are, the Blazers and Heat may need another third party.
Toronto Raptors
Speaking of teams that need a guard who can create in half-court sets… The Toronto Raptors have a lot of wings. Some may argue that they have a surplus of them. What they don’t have is a dynamic scoring guard.
Meanwhile, this team may be on a rebuilding timeline. They just lost Fred VanVleet in free agency. Furthermore, they’re widely expected to move Pascal Siakam this summer.
NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: Damian Lillard, Miami Heat & Toronto Raptors Updates
If they do, the young Herro would be a perfect addition to this core. On the other hand, the Raptors have shown a reluctance to rebuild before. If they’re not going that way, this might not work. Could a Western Conference team get involved?
Utah Jazz
It’s a bit difficult to get a read on what this Utah Jazz team might do. They’re in a unique position. The Jazz weren’t good last year, but they weren’t bad either. This team is in the middle. What direction should they lean into?
We’re not sure. With that said, the Jazz are young. They’ve got a massive collection of draft capital. This team has the flexibility to justify almost any decision this summer.
NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: Damian Lillard, Miami Heat & Utah Jazz Updates
That would include acquiring Herro. The Jazz would likely build an offer around draft capital. For them, this would be a win-now move. There’s nothing especially complicated about that.
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