Damian Lillard Trade Rumors: Team Skeptical Blazers Want to Move Star amid Heat Talks

As the basketball world continues to wait for a Damian Lillard trade, there's skepticism about the Portland Trail Blazers' willingness to move the seven-time All-Star.

Per Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald, one team that spoke with the Blazers is "skeptical" that they actually want to trade Lillard at this point.

Earlier this week, Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium said on The Rally that the Blazers have told the Miami Heat to make their best offer for the 33-year-old.

Last week, Aaron J. Fentress of The Oregonian said on the Blazer Focused podcast (h/t SI.com's Jelani Scott) the Heat and Blazers were "pretty close" on the framework of a deal but draft compensation was holding up an agreement because Portland wants four first-round picks.

According to Fentress, Miami's offer included Tyler Herro, salary filler, maybe one young player and three first-round draft picks.

It's unclear where things stand between the two sides at this point. B/R's Chris Haynes said on the #thisleague UNCUT podcast with Marc Stein that Miami is "frustrated" at the slow pace things are moving in part because the Blazers aren't being clear about what exactly they want.

Lillard formally requested a trade from the Blazers on July 1 after months of speculation about his future with the franchise. The Heat have been considered the frontrunner to acquire him, but Charania also cited the Brooklyn Nets as a potentially strong suitor.

Blazers general manager Joe Cronin told reporters during a July 10 press conference he was "going to do what's best for our team" and "if it takes months, it takes months."

To this point, Lillard hasn't given any indication he wouldn't show up to training camp if he's still on Portland's roster in September. Things could always change as that gets closer.

Lillard could potentially swing the balance of power in the NBA if he gets traded. He averaged a career-high 32.2 points per game on 46.3 percent shooting in 58 starts last season.