Post-Draft Trade Idea Lands Knicks Damian Lillard

The Portland Trail Blazers and Damian Lillard seem committed to each other after the NBA Draft but that hasn't stopped hypothetical deals involving the New York Knicks.

The New York Dame Times? Some NBA forecasters just can't let the concept go, even after a potential blueprint was laid out at Thursday's NBA Draft.

Lillard expressing commitment to the Portland Trail Blazers is more of a summer tradition than blockbusters and ice cream at this point and his longtime employers started to pave a path back toward contention on Thursday. With the third pick in the proceedings, Portland added Scoot Henderson of G League Ignite before using a pick they acquired from the New York Knicks (in the Josh Hart deadline deal) for Iowa forward Kris Murray.

In the aftermath, Portland management declared it had little intention of answering calls for Lillard.

"I would love to see Dame retire a Trail Blazer," Blazers general manager Joe Cronin said, per Tim Bontemps of ESPN. "I have zero desire to trade him. I really hope this works out here. 

James Piercey of the NBA Analysis Network nonetheless suggested that the Knicks and Blazers deal again, offering a trade that sent Lillard to Manhattan in exchange for three first-round picks (2026, 2028, 2030) and a hefty veteran load featuring RJ Barrett, Immanuel Quickley, and Obi Toppin.

Whenever Lillard's name comes up in trade discussions, the Knicks are inevitably attached and this cycle is no exception. A modern Lillard trade seems redundant thanks to Jalen Brunson's metropolitan breakout but Piercey makes the case for it by claiming that the two backcourt stars' different levels of experience can mesh well with each other. 

"Brunson is a veteran and a proven NBA contributor. Lillard won’t be waiting for him to develop," NBAAN declares. "Brunson has already arrived. The two should be able to co-exist as well. As two small guards, they may struggle defensively, but offensively, this works. Both Lillard and Brunson can shoot both off of the catch and the dribble."

The Knicks would send a hefty haul over the Pacific Northwest, but Piercey claims it'll be enough to entice Portland into building one of the more intriguing young cores in the NBA in lieu of rushing into contention with the soon-to-be-33-year-old Lillard, one that already included Shaedon Sharpe and Anfernee Simmons before Henderson's arrival.  

"In all likelihood, it’s time for the Blazers to start from scratch. This deal helps them do it." Piercey says. "They’re bringing in a platoon of talented young players in Barrett, Quickley, and Toppin. Adding them to a young core that already features Henderson, Shaedon Sharpe, and Anfernee Simons will give them one of the best young cores in the NBA."

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Geoff Magliocchetti is on Twitter @GeoffJMags

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