Bucks Star Giannis Antetokounmpo Backs Down Blazers Guard Damian Lillard - Photo by Abbie Parr/Getty Images
MILWAUKEE, WI (WSAU) – With NBA Media Day quickly approaching, trade talks around all-star point guard Damian Lillard are beginning to heat up.
According to ESPN Senior NBA Reporter Marcus J. Spears, the Milwaukee Bucks and Portland have had conversations about a trade that would send Lillard to Milwaukee and likely several players and draft picks to Portland.
Spears also reports that other teams, such as the Toronto Raptors, Chicago Bulls, and Philadelphia Sixers, have also reached out to Portland about a Lillard trade.
Back in 2020, on an episode of the Posted Up podcast, Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports revealed that Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo had grown especially close with Damian Lillard that summer.
“Sources have told me that both of them were talking with each other about the possibility of what it would look like to play with each other, you know, when their contracts allowed it,” Haynes said, via SB Nation. “I believe Dame was trying to tell Giannis about what it would look like for him to play in Portland and, vice versa, what it would look like for him to play in Milwaukee.”
Damian Lillard also posted on X (Twitter) back in 2022, which is also fueling the Lillard to Milwaukee rumors. See the post below.
Giannis https://t.co/x44aDOW4XM
— Damian Lillard (@Dame_Lillard) May 15, 2022
As Giannis Antetokounmpo continues to speculate about his future, one notable analyst believes the 28-year-old’s long-term plans will most certainly exclude the Milwaukee Bucks if they fail to bring in another superstar to help the Bucks contend for another championship over the next two seasons.
Over the weekend, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said Antetokounmpo’s next contract would “probably” be with another team due to the team’s recent playoff failures and not having much cap space or draft picks to bring in superstars to help Giannis reach another NBA Finals.
Antetokounmpo has until Oct. 23 to sign a three-year, $169 million deal with Milwaukee, which would keep him with the Bucks until the 2028–29 season. If Antetokounmpo waits until the summer of 2024 to sign, he could get a four-year deal worth about $234 million, but it may go up to $258 million depending on how much the salary cap rises over the next year.
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