Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups spoke to Steve Aschburner of NBA.com about Damian Lillard requesting a trade from the franchise. Billups didn’t bash Lillard at all, but he did admit the trade request is difficult to process.

“Yeah, yeah. Obviously it’s unsettling, it’s difficult. But for me, all I can do, I’m responsible for giving my best to who we have,” Billups, who is entering his third season with the Blazers, said. “I don’t know how it’s going to play out. There’s nothing I can do to control it. But I do know who we have on our team right now and who I’ve been working with this summer. Who I’m excited about. All I can really do is pour myself into our guys. And see what happens whenever that happens.”

NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: Damian Lillard, Chauncey Billups, Portland Trail Blazers Updates

Lillard requested to be traded from the Blazers to only the Miami Heat on July 1. He has spent all 11 seasons of his NBA career with Portland, which selected him with the sixth pick in the 2012 NBA Draft. The Blazers finished 33-49 and 13th in the Western Conference last season.

“Dame has been incredible,” Billups said. “To the fans of Portland, to our organization. He hasn’t been negative at all to anybody in our organization. Dame has been a stand-up guy. A professional the whole way through. It’s the business at hand. I don’t think there’s pressure on either side.”

Lillard averaged 32.2 points, 4.8 rebounds and 7.3 assists last season for the Blazers. He will make $46.6 million next season. The future Hall of Famer signed a two-year, $121.8 million extension with Portland in July 2022.

NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: Damian Lillard, Chauncey Billups, Portland Trail Blazers Updates

Lillard has career averages of 25.2 points, 4.2 rebounds and 6.7 assists with the Blazers. He’s the leading scorer in franchise history.

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