Insider Greg Sylvander of the Miami Heat estimated the final trade sum that the Heat will part with to get Damian Lillard of the Portland Trail Blazers. Sylvander predicted that Miami will trade four first-round picks and three first-round pick swaps in the deal, which would include a significant amount of draft money.
Damian Lillard has formally asked for a trade, and numerous sources have claimed he wants to join the Miami Heat. Even when he lacks the contractual clout to force anyone’s hand, a superstar who wants to join a specific squad nearly always manages to get there.
Reports indicate Damian Lillard only wants the Heats switch
Damian Lillard as indicated by the reports is not looking to be traded to any other team besides the Miami Heat. That being said, the Blazers must maintain some degree of control over this potential transaction of 176 million dollars, despite initial reports on Saturday that they would bend over backward to satisfy Dame’s requests.
“Portland doesn’t love what Miami has but it may be the best that they can get”
– Adrian Wojnarowski on Damian Lillard’s trade market pic.twitter.com/dDocnggsTy
— OutOfSightSports🚀™️ (@OOSSports) July 11, 2023
Thus effectively indicating that they would support the Miami plan—they are reportedly now saying the right things in order to keep their options open. “The Blazers’ front office, they made it clear to teams that called about Damian Lillard yesterday that they are open for business everywhere in the league,” on Sunday, ESPN insider Woj reported.
“[Lillard] does not have a no-trade clause,” Wojnarowski persisted. “Miami doesn’t have any advantage in trying to get a trade for Damian Lillard just because he’s asking to go there.” For the time being, it is safe to presume that Miami is using this as a publicity stunt to raise its offer, knowing full well that Portland will accept anything given its position of power.
Heat insider’s predicted trade package includes massive names
In exchange for Damian Lillard, the Heat would sell Tyler Herro, a past Sixth Man of the Year, but he’s likely the biggest asset that the institution would be prepared to part with. Miami selected Herro, 23, with the 13th all-encompassing choice in the Draft of 2019’s NBA team. In the regular season of 2022–23, he shot 43.9 percent from the field and 37.8 percent from outside the arc, averaging 20.1 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 4.2 assists per game.
Heat insider @GregSylvander predicts what a final trade package for Damian Lillard would look like:
Tyler Herro
Duncan Robinson
Nikola Jovic
First-round pick
First-round pick
First-round pick
First-round pick
First-round pick swap
First-round pick swap
First-round pick… pic.twitter.com/rZG8Lo8Jkn— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) July 16, 2023
Herro sustained a hand injury during the first game of the opening round against the Milwaukee Bucks, consequently leading to his absence for a significant portion of the Heat’s playoff campaign. Jovic, who was selected by the team in the first round of the 2022 NBA Draft, played for Miami just in 15 games during the regular season.
Although he has a lot of promise, the team last year didn’t appear to consider him ready for the rotation. The last member of Sylvander’s anticipated package, Robinson, helps cover the deal’s salary while also contributing to Miami’s success in the 2022–23 playoffs. In 23 playoff games, Robinson made 44.2 percent of his long-range attempts.
Robinson’s departure would be difficult given that the organization also parted ways with shooter Max Strus this offseason in a sign-and-trade. In any case, adding “The Big Game Dame” would give Miami one of the league’s top three-point combinations. As long as they stay healthy, Damian Lillard, Bam Adebayo, and Jimmy Butler should be enough for the Heat to compete for a championship.
