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Damian Lillard Trade Rumors: Star to Focus on Team USA Before 'Reassessing' Situation
July 28, 2021
Portland Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard is reportedly taking a wait-and-see approach before deciding what he wants to do with his future.
Per The Athletic's Sam Amick, Lillard will "continue focusing on his Team USA experience while waiting to see how the Blazers’ roster looks later in the offseason before reassessing his situation."
Lillard is currently playing with Team USA in the Tokyo Olympics. His future with the Blazers has been one of the biggest topics in the NBA since the Denver Nuggets eliminated them in the first round of the playoffs.
Some of the speculation was fueled by the six-time All-Star's comments in the wake of that postseason defeat.
"We have to look in the mirror and say I have to be better because whatever it is we’re doing is not working and it’s not giving us the shot to compete on the level that we want to compete on," Lillard told Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports.
Lillard has yet to publicly request a trade from Portland, and there's been no indication at this point that he's seriously considering a move.
"It's a lot of things being said, sometimes words being put in my mouth when I haven't said anything. It's been a lot of talk. I don't really have nothing to say to you guys about it," Lillard told reporters in July about the speculation.
Next season will mark the start of Lillard's four-year, $176.3 million contact extension that he signed in 2019. The deal does include a player option for the 2024-25 season.
Portland has made the playoffs in each of the past eight seasons, but it has lost in the first round five times during that span.
Lillard has been the Blazers' leading scorer every season since the 2015-16 campaign. He averaged 28.8 points per game and shot 39.1 percent from three-point range last season.