Photo caption: Damian Lillard (left) and Giannis Antetokounmpo
After demanding several trade requests in the off season, the Portland Trail Blazers traded future NBA Hall of Famer and Perennial All-Star Damian Lillard to the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday, September 27, according to multiple sources.
“I would say I want to be remembered for who I was, not as a player, but the principle that I stood on regardless of how successful I was, how major the failure was, the criticism, what people thought I should have did, what people think of me, what was happening, I want to be remembered for who I was,” said Lillard in an interview with former teammate Evan Turner of the “Point Forward” podcast earlier this year.
Lillard is headed to the Bucks as part of a three-team deal with the Phoenix Suns that sees guard Jrue Holiday and center Deandre Ayton on the move.
In the trade, the Bucks will receive Lillard and the Trail Blazers will receive Jrue Holiday, Deandre Ayton, Toumani Camara, 2029 unprotected 1st round pick (from MIL) Unprotected MIL swap rights in 2028 and 2030.
The Suns will receive center Jusuf Nurkic, guard Grayson Allen, Nassir Little and Keon Johnson. NBA insiders said the acquisition of Lillard comes after Antetokounmpo told The New York Times over the summer that he wanted to see how committed the Bucks were toward winning another championship before deciding whether to sign a long-term deal to stay in Milwaukee.
The sources also said Antetokounmpo’s contract runs through the 2024-25 season, with a player option for 2025-26. In addition to Antetokounmpo’s deal, Lillard is owed the bank over the next four years.
The former Trail Blazers guard will make almost $46 million this coming season and could make as much as $216 million over the next four years if he exercises his option for the 2026-27 season.
The Bucks are obtaining Lillard in the prime of his career. He is coming off a season in which he averaged 32.2 points per game for the Trail Blazers. He is also a seven-time All-NBA selection and was selected to the NBA’s 75th Anniversary Team.
He has averaged at least 24 points per game in each of the last eight seasons, and his career average of 25.2 points ranks fourth among active players. Last season, Lillard became the all-time leading scorer in Blazers history, passing Hall of Famer Clyde Drexler for the mark in a Dec. 19 game in Oklahoma City.
Joseph Phillips is the Sports Editor for the Chicago Crusader Newspaper. He is a Chicago native, who has been a sports writer for over 17 years. He also hosts the SC Media News and Sports Network Q&A radio show on WHPK 88.5 FM Chicago.
