Report: Damian Lillard’s agent has issued warning to interested teams
Mar 10, 2023; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard (0) against the Philadelphia 76ers at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports
Damian Lillard is determined to play for the Miami Heat, and the star point guard’s agent is reportedly trying to scare away other teams to help his client achieve that outcome.
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski wrote in his insider column on Thursday that Lillard’s agent, Aaron Goodwin, has essentially been telling all teams other than the Heat to not bother trying to trade for Lillard. Goodwin has warned interested teams outside of Miami that they will be getting an unhappy player if they acquire Lillard.
“Dame’s agent, Aaron Goodwin, has been calling prospective trade partners & warning against trading for him, team executives told ESPN. Goodwin is telling organizations outside of Miami that trading for Lillard is trading for an unhappy player.” @wojespn https://t.co/3ZCqpRLT2W pic.twitter.com/5lGbeIH9pR
— Dru (@dru_star) July 6, 2023
As Wojnarowski noted, the strategy from Goodwin is a fairly common one. Lillard’s contract with the Portland Trail Blazers does not include a no-trade clause. It would make sense for Portland to trade Lillard to the highest bidder. By letting teams know Lillard will be unhappy playing for any team other than Miami, Goodwin is hoping to drive those non-Heat bids down.
The Blazers have reportedly been unhappy with offers from the Heat thus far, which is why a third team may need to get involved.
A report on Wednesday named one dark horse team that has looked into acquiring Lillard, but the 32-year-old remains solely focused on Miami.