Damian Lillard has most fans torn over his trade request after a decade of loyalty to the Portland Trail Blazers. Lillard’s 2012 NBA Draft classmate Austin Rivers made his stance on it clear — he’s not a fan.
On a recent episode of the “Off Guard with Austin Rivers” podcast, the Duke product was asked by co-host Pausha Haghighi to discuss what Lillard’s trade demand means for the Blazers guard’s legacy (22:27 mark).
Rivers lamented how Lillard has supposedly turned his back on being “the poster boy” for team loyalty after championing the ideology for years. Rivers then went on to criticize the reports that Lillard won’t suit up for a team he doesn’t want to play for.
“Regardless of how good of a player you are, the NBA is a privilege,” said Rivers. “If you’re a free agent, then you can choose where you are gonna go. That’s the business. But when you’re not and you sign a deal, man. That’s part of the business, bro. If you get traded somewhere, you’ve got to go play.
“This started with like James [Harden] and Ben [Simmons] and all these guys doing this s–. It’s bad for the league. … It’s a scary dynamic when stars start acting like this. I’m not a big fan of it, to be honest with you. And I’m a big fan of Dame.”
It’s almost impossible to determine a definitive answer on which side is right or wrong.
On the one hand, Rivers does speak the truth with regard to being bound by a contract that pays top stars, like Lillard, hundreds of millions of dollars. The NBA is a business and its players should play for whichever team holds their contract.
But on the other hand, Lillard has given the Blazers season after season to try and build a contender around him, but to no avail. With Portland not keen on trading Scoot Henderson for an established star, it’s clear that the team sees the rookie as Lillard’s heir apparent.
Dame’s camp is simply hoping the team repays their star for his years of loyalty by sending him to his preferred destination, the Miami Heat.
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