Damian Lillard and the Portland Trail Blazers finally made a move this season when they traded away CJ McCollum and Norman Powell in a bid to try and execute a quick rebuild around Damian Lillard that would allow them to contend. With a new permanent GM at the helm, and an interesting offseason coming up for the team, who they will pursue and land to play alongside Lillard remains anybody’s guess.
Zach LaVine has been mentioned as a possibility as they try to find another second star that can help Dame in the playoffs, but ideally, they would also get an elite big man to help on both ends of the court. And following the Phoenix Suns’ loss to the Dallas Mavericks in Game 7 on Sunday, Lillard made it clear who we might want to play alongside given the opportunity.
DeAndre Ayton has proved over the last couple of seasons that he can play at an extremely high level, even in the playoffs. He was ineffective against the Mavs after an excellent couple of games to start the series, and his future is in doubt with the Suns seemingly not prepared to give him a max contract.
In the aftermath of the game, a fan tweeted saying he should join up with Lillard instead of staying in Phoenix.
DeAndre Ayton needs to do whats best for himself and go win a ring with Dame
— TROX (@iamTROX) May 16, 2022
“DeAndre Ayton needs to do whats best for himself and go win a ring with Dame.”
And while the tweet went viral on NBA Twitter at large, one of the most interesting things about it was that it was liked by Lillard himself.
Ayton has averaged 16 points and 10 rebounds throughout the first 4 years of his NBA career, and he has all the tools necessary to develop into one of the best players in the league. Phoenix’s success may have made it seem like a no-brainer to stay but after their embarrassing exit at the hand of the Mavericks and the doubts they seemingly have, Ayton himself might want to go team up with Dame instead.
