Damian Lillard Trade Rumors: Blazers Still Have 'No Interest' in Doing Deal with Heat

The Portland Trail Blazers are reportedly not budging in their pursuit of a better Damian Lillard trade than what the Miami Heat are offering.

Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald reported the Blazers are "still showing no interest in doing a deal with the Heat."

Parameters of Miami's offer have not been made public, but it stands to reason Tyler Herro, Nikola Jovic and Jaime Jaquez Jr. would be included, along with future first-round picks. Portland's lack of interest in Herro and his $120 million contract has been a major snag, as it would likely require a third team take on the 2022 NBA Sixth Man of the Year while sending further assets back to the Blazers.

Lillard has made it clear in no uncertain terms that he wants to play in Miami. The behind-the-scenes push has been so blatantly obvious—and so clearly leaked to the media—that the NBA sent a memo last month threatening Lillard with punishment for the rhetoric.

Leaking a preferred destination to the media is nothing new. It's been a tried-and-true negotiation ploy even before the so-called "player empowerment" era but has become more prevalent over the last decade or so. Anthony Davis (Lakers), Paul George (Clippers) and James Harden (Nets...then Sixers a year later) have been able to force their way to desired locales in recent seasons—sometimes making things ugly along the way to get their way.

Lillard does not seem the type to go full Harden and scorch the earth in hopes of forcing a deal, but there's quite obviously hope for a quid pro quo on his end. The All-Star guard was loyal to Portland for the first 11 years of his NBA career and only asked for a trade when it became apparent the Blazers had no interest in competing any time soon. From his perspective, it would be easy to see why he'd hope the Blazers would do him a solid and send him to his preferred team on the way out.

From the Blazers' perspective, there is no actual reason to do this. Lillard is a bonafide superstar, and the haul they receive in return will help determine the trajectory of the franchise's rebuilding process. Taking anything less than the maximum possible offer would amount to front-office malpractice.