The Portland Trail Blazers decided to trade Damian Lillard to the Milwaukee Bucks, which disappointed many netizens.
The decision was made after a three-team trade-off involving the Phoenix Suns and Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday, Sept. 27.
Trail Blazers Damian Lillard Trade Receives Criticisms
Damian Lillard #0 of the Portland Trail Blazers passes the ball during the second quarter against the Boston Celtics at the Moda Center on March 17, 2023 in Portland, Oregon.
In exchange for the NBA team's star player, the Trail Blazers will receive Tounami Camara, Deandre Ayton, and Jrue Holiday.
Aside from this, Portland will also get the unprotected Milwaukee swap rights in 2028 and 2030, as well as the 2029 unprotected first-round draft pick of the Bucks. Meanwhile, the Phoenix Suns will get Keon Johnson, Nassir Little, and Jusuf Nurkic, as reported by ESPN.
The latest trade-off deal between the three teams happened after Lillard requested the Trail Blazers to trade him. In July, the NBA point guard said that he wanted to be a part of the Miami Heat.
Unfortunately, he wasn't able to get what he wanted. Although this is the case, Damian said he is excited about the next chapter of his NBA career with the Milwaukee Bucks.
"The casuals won't be addressed but the trailblazers fans and city of Portland that I love truly will be ... and they will be addressed truthfully," he said via his official Facebook post.
However, many people were disappointed with the decision of the Trail Blazers. Some netizens criticized how Milwaukee "gave up half of their rosters" just to get Lillard.
Others said that it should have been the Miami Heat that received Damian Lillard since the basketball player always wanted to be in that team.
Who Wins and Who Loses in This NBA Trade-Off
Damian Lillard #0 of the Portland Trail Blazers scores on a dunk in a 108-98 win over the Los Angeles Clippers during Game Five of the Western Conference Quarterfinals during the 2016 NBA Playoffs on April 27, 2016 in Los Angeles, California.
Of course, the main winner for this NBA trade-off is the Milwaukee Bucks. Why? Damian Lillard's arrival could encourage Giannis Antetokounmpo to commit more years to the team.
NBC reported that the "Greek Freak" hasn't shown any interest in committing to Milwaukee unless he can win another championship.
But, with Lillard being an elite scorer and a very efficient point guard, the Bucks can now have a great duo that can carry the team to get another win.
Sports analysts explained that the three players traded off by the Bucks could greatly weaken the team's defenses. However, with Lillard and Giannis, their offense is expected to increase drastically.
Since the trade-off has a major winner, there's also a major loser. This is the Miami Heat. Previously, Pat Riley allowed two of their starters, Max Strus and Gave Vincent, to walk in free agency.
This is because the NBA team was expecting to fill those positions with ring-chasing veterans, such as Lillard. However, this didn't happen. Now, the Heat is stuck with a lacking roster.
Due to this surprising turn of events, the Miami Heat needs to deal with its short-handed roster in the upcoming NBA season.
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