Damian Lillard is one of the players who’s struggling to find this touch during the 2021/22 NBA season. The Portland Trail Blazers All-Star point guard is still trying to find his best form after two complex first weeks of competition (he’s averaging 20.0 PPG, 8.8 less than last season).
During the summer, Dame was linked with a series of teams, but he made it clear he won’t leave the Blazers since he wants to win in Portland. Some reports suggest this is a trick to get more help at Moda Center, but it’s unclear how the team will do that.
Meanwhile, Dame is struggling to find his touch and one analyst believes this is the beginning of the end for this Lillard-Blazers association. ESPN’s Jay Williams recently claimed he doesn’t see Lillard staying with Portland for the rest of his career, even though he always pulls the loyalty card (2:35).
“I don’t see how Dame can last in Portland,” the former player-turned-analyst said KJM.
“I know he’s the guy that will sit there and say ‘I am loyal, I want to be here’ but this is a team that’s always plagued with injuries, it’s a team that always doesn’t hit where you want them to hit, and I think you’re gonna see Dame conclude pretty soon here guys, where that’s not gonna be the place he needs to be.”
During the offseason, Lillard was linked with a move to the Philadelphia 76ers in exchange for Ben Simmons, but that never happened. Now, he looks like an interesting addition to the Brooklyn Nets to take over controversial star Kyrie Irving.
This is a long shot, but the Blazers and Nets could take advantage of a move like this. But, Dame has expressed his desire of winning in Portland and joining a superteam would contradict everything he’s stated during his career.
Still, it doesn’t look like we will stop hearing these rumors anytime soon. Lillard is a sought-after player around the league and seeing that other stars like Zach LaVine and Bradley Beal got the help they missed in the past couple of seasons, he could wait and see if the Blazers’ front office do its job or he simply requests a trade to try to change his situation.
