Argbauly the biggest trade during the 2023 NBA offseason was the Milwaukee Bucks acquiring Damian Lillard from the Portland Trail Blazers. They swooped in at the 11th hour, landing him after it looked like a foregone conclusion that he would eventually land with the Miami Heat.
The Heat is where Lillard and his representation wanted to land, but the Trail Blazers instead opted to accept the offer from the Bucks. One of the players acquired in that deal was Jrue Holiday, who Portland flipped for even more assets.
The Bucks were thrilled about the trade, as they believed Lillard would help raise the ceiling of the team. They’d lose something defensively swapping him in for Holiday, but Lillard is the superior offensive player and would help take pressure off of Giannis Antetokounmpo in crunch time, or so they thought.
The version of Lillard that the Bucks have received was not what they were expecting. Being traded and adjusting to a new city, especially one you didn’t want to end up in, cannot be easy. Lillard was also dealing with personal matters off the court.
It would be fair to say that Milwaukee is having some buyer’s remorse. According to a source who spoke to NBA Analysis Network, the team is not happy with Lillard and could look to move him this upcoming offseason.
“The Bucks are not happy with the season they’ve gotten from Dame. He hasn’t been great in the locker room and his teammates aren’t the biggest fans. I would not be shocked if they’re open to moving on from him this offseason.”
Another early exit from the NBA Postseason will lead to some major changes to the Bucks roster. NBA analyst Brian Windhorst hinted that Antetokounmpo could look for a change of scenery should Milwaukee get eliminated early once again.
There is a lot of pressure on players to perform in the postseason. Lillard will be facing even more, as the Bucks are relying on him to help carry the team with Antetokounmpo sidelined for at least the start of the first round against the Indiana Pacers.
These are the moments that the Bucks acquired Lillard for, hoping he would compensate for when Antetokounmpo was out. If he cannot rise to the occasion against the Pacers, those NBA rumors are going to pick up quickly.
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