Blazers' Joe Cronin: Damian Lillard and I 'Went Through It This Summer' Before Trade

The Damian Lillard era in Portland is over after the Trail Blazers honored the seven-time All-NBA guard's trade request and dealt him to the Milwaukee Bucks.

That move ended nearly three months of drama in which Lillard remained in limbo.

A trade to his coveted destination in Miami never went through, and Blazers general manager Joe Cronin reportedly shut the door on a potential return late in the summer when a deal had not yet materialized. All in all, it was a messy end to the Lillard era, as Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report covered.

In an interview with Ben Golliver of the Washington Post, Cronin admitted that he and Lillard "went through it this summer" and that the relationship "wasn't always amicable and perfect."

"[Lillard] and I went through it this summer," Cronin said.

"It wasn't always amicable and perfect. To be omitted from that [letter], I didn't take as anything more than it being a hard summer that we had both gone through. I wasn't one to be thanked at that moment. … Our directions didn't line up. Things didn't work out. We had pure intentions in our desire to build a winner around him. We were just unable to pull it off. I don't think that was a lie. We just couldn't get it done."

Lillard notably told Haynes that things "behind the scenes definitely left a sour taste in my mouth." He did pen a long letter to the city of Portland and Blazers fans upon his exit, however, notably thanking them and appreciate their love and support for all those years.

Ultimately, both sides have moved on. Portland is embarking on a new rebuild based around a host of young talent featuring No. 3 overall pick Scoot Henderson and a breakout second-year star in Shaedon Sharpe. Milwaukee, meanwhile, looks primed for a championship run with Lillard and two-time NBA MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo leading the way.

As far as Lillard's return to Portland goes, the Bucks will be paying their visit to the Moda Center on Jan. 31.