Damian Lillard reveals text message from Giannis Antetokounmpo after trade

Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report talked with Lillard soon after the trade was announced. During the interview, Lillard revealed that he had received several text messages congratulating him on his new team. One of them was from Giannis, and it was short and to the point: “Let’s get this f–king championship.”

Winning, to Giannis, is everything. It is everything to Lillard, too.

But is Lillard an upgrade over Holiday?

On one hand, Holiday is a three-time All-Defensive first-teamer and is widely considered to be the best defensive player in the NBA. He can guard any of the five positions and is an above-average offensive point guard as well.

On the other hand, Lillard is one of the 75 greatest players of all time. While widely considered to be a below-average defender, he is one of the NBA’s best three-point shooters and overall scorers. He averaged 32.2 points and 7.3 assists per game for Portland last year, and has career averages of 25.2 points and 6.7 assists.

While the Bucks gave up some flexibility on defense, they gain one of the most lethal scorers in the NBA right now. A pick-and-roll combination between Lillard and Giannis is going to be impossible for teams to stop. And in the rare instance that they do, there will be Khris Middleton wide open.

Speaking of Middleton, he goes from the second option on offense to the third, and how many teams have a third option who is a three-time All-Star and 40-50-90 potential?

In short, the answer is “yes.” Lillard is an upgrade over Holiday. This is not to say Holiday isn’t a good player. He was an All-Star last year and is certainly an important figure in team history.

But as Giannis said to Haynes:

“At the end of the day, Jrue will always be my brother for life. He’s one of the best human beings I’ve been around. But we’ve got to focus on the goal to win the championship. Dame wants this. He’s hungry to win, and he’s going to push us. I’m very happy to have him on our team.”

Earlier this offseason, Holiday had expressed his desire to retire when his contract in Milwaukee ended. While he recently walked those statements back, it was probably enough for the Bucks to question his long-term commitment to winning with the franchise. And if they want to keep Giannis long-term, there can be no questions about anyone’s commitment.

The Bucks start training camp on Tuesday and play their first preseason game against the Chicago Bulls on Sunday Oct. 8.