Damian Lillard’s relationship with the Portland Trail Blazers has never been more frayed. The Chauncey Billups debacle was obviously the most notable thing to damage the rapport between player and team, but frustrations had been building for a while.
Four teams are currently said to be in the running for Lillard’s services should a trade occur.
One of those teams? The Los Angeles Lakers.
A recent Instagram post by the All-Star has only added fuel to the fire:
In the photo Lillard posted, he can be seen with purple and gold in the backdrop and a message that seems to shed doubt on his future.
Is it a ton to go off of? Obviously not. But it follows a theme. Also this week, Lillard posted another Laker-related reference on social media:
Not to mention the fact that LeBron James has already been openly called out for attempting to recruit Lillard to LA.
Clearly there isn’t a whole lot of public signaling by Lillard regarding his future, but these things rarely happen in the light of day. Superstars generally move fairly clandestinely when possible, so it should come as no surprise that it’s happening that way here is well.
This story about Jimmy Butler and Rachel Nichols is wild. https://t.co/qMwCXDmx6o
— Game 7 (@game7__) July 6, 2021
What’s impossible to dispute is that there is far more chatter around Lillard leaving Portland now than ever. And generally where there’s smoke, there’s fire.
Is Lillard definitely leaving the Blazers? It’s impossible to say for certain. But things are certainly beginning to trend in that direction.
Related: Is A Big NBA Trade Brewing Between Lakers, Spurs?
A graduate from the University of Texas, Anthony Amador has been credentialed to cover the Houston Texans, Dallas Cowboys, San Antonio Spurs, Dallas Mavericks and high school games all over the Lone Star State. Currently, his primary beats are the NBA, MLB, NFL and UFC.
