Damian Lillard never shies away from exposing journalists on Twitter when they try to concoct stories involving him. Woj insinuated that Blazers were close to trading him and the All-Star trashed the report with a meme.
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The Blazers have been struggling for well over 2 seasons now because of absolutely no front office action. While the rest of the teams in the West made excellent off-season moves, the Blazers have made little to no meaningful changes. As a result, a team that was Top 5 at one point is barely making the playoffs now.
Currently, at the 10th spot in the west, they will make the play-in tournament at best. Just when things started to look better for the Blazers, Damian Lillard got sidelined with an abdominal injury. He is expected to miss 10 days of action and their #2 option CJ McCollum is listed on the injury report as well.
Portland can’t seem to catch a break with injuries. Zach Collins didn’t play at all for 2 years and Jusuf Nurkic returned towards the end of last season.
The injuries suffered by Dame and CJ put Portland in a precarious situation right now. NBA reporters, on the other hand, are taking full advantage of the situation by making up stories, at least according to Lillard.
Damian Lillard is tired of assuring fans that he will not leave Portland Trail Blazers
The first-round exit to Denver Nuggets of all teams in the playoffs last season sparked a debate on Lillard’s future. There were rumors about Dame requesting a trade from the Blazers front office due to lack of help. However, the superstar shut them down for good when he expressed his intent to stay in Portland and win a ring the ‘right way’.
Blazers General Manager Neil Olshey was recently fired for toxic workplace behavior. Dame was appreciative of him for giving him a chance in 2012 by drafting him. However, he felt it’s a part of the business at the end of the day.
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported that Damian Lillard is looking for a hefty contract extension from the Blazers. However, the candidates deemed suitable for the vacant GM position are unwilling to offer him an extension like that. In addition, he believes they are open to trading the superstar who stayed loyal to them all these years to possibly go into rebuild mode.
Can’t say I’m surprised. https://t.co/AwOUKOfGQv
— Damian Lillard (@Dame_Lillard) December 7, 2021
Damian Lillard is known to react to news involving him on Twitter. In his characteristic fashion, he denied the rumors with a meme. He’s been in the league for over a decade and at this point, the 6x All-Star is not even surprised by all this.
Earlier this month there were reports about growing frustration within the Blazers and Lillard had to deny that too. He is looking for Portland to build around him so that they can have a real shot at winning the title.
Defensive-minded players like Ben Simmons and Jaylen Brown are on his radar. A late-season comeback might help them advance to the playoffs. However, a title run this year is out of the question for the Blazers.
