Heat Surpassed as ‘Frontrunner’ for Damian Lillard Trade, per Insider

The buzz surrounding a Damian Lillard trade has taken a sharp left turn.

While much of the Damian Lillard trade chatter this offseason has been hyper-focused on the Heat, it appears the Raptors are making serious noise. Just one day after Sportsnet’s Michael Grange reported that Toronto is “very much in the mix” for Lillard, the latest update grabbed even more attention.

Not only are the Raptors now seemingly involved in the Lillard trade pursuit, but they’re the “frontrunner,” according to ESPN’s Marc J. Spears.

“The hottest name that i’m hearing right now of interest is the Toronto Raptors, actually,” Spears said on ESPN’s NBA Today. “Talked to two really high ranking team executives today, and they said that Toronto’s the frontrunner and they wouldn’t be surprised if he ended up in the ‘6.’”

"The hottest name that I'm hearing right now of interest is the Toronto Raptors." — @MarcJSpears

Could Dame end up in the 6? 👀 pic.twitter.com/ISkyyxAY8v

— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) September 25, 2023

While Spears did state that there’s no trade “imminent,” he did cite the move the Raptors made to acquire Kawhi Leonard previously, which led to the team winning a title. Spears also joked that Toronto may need to “get Drake into his ear a little bit,” when referencing Lillard’s reported desire to only play for Miami.