All-star point guard Damian Lillard is expected to demand a trade away from the Portland Trail Blazers.
Lillard, 30, who's spent his entire nine-year NBA career with the Blazers, is reportedly disgruntled with the franchise's process to hire a new coach and concerns over whether it is capable of building a championship contender, league sources told Yahoo Sports.
Portland is reportedly set to hire former all-star point guard and current Los Angeles Clippers assistant Chauncey Billups as its next head coach.
Yahoo Sports reports none of the candidates who were interviewed were suggested by Lillard, the Blazers' franchise player and, although Lillard and Billups have a relationship, the All-NBA guard is reported to have had no prior knowledge of a past sexual assault allegation against Billups from 1997.
Lillard has been reported to be disgruntled with the organization even prior to the reported hiring of Billups, with some Blazers fans taking aim at him on social media in relation to the coaching search he had no part of in recent weeks, according to Yahoo Sports.
BetOnline (viaOddsShark) has already listed teams with the best odds for acquiring Lillard if traded which includes the following:
- New York Knicks (+250)
- Philadelphia 76ers (+275)
- Miami Heat (+300)
- Los Angeles Lakers (+350)
- Los Angeles Clippers (+400)
- Boston Celtics (+450)
The Knicks currently have multiple first-round picks in the upcoming 2021 NBA Draft, as well as a surplus of young talent coming off a surprisingly successful 2020-21 season.
New York also has a need at point guard as it's expected to let former starter Elfird Payton leave in free agency amid struggles throughout the 2020-21 season, which coincided with former NBA MVP Derrick Rose excelling in a role off the bench with limited, but more minutes played late in games.
The Sixers also have multiple tradable draft picks, as well as reported interest to ship three-time all-star Ben Simmons amid a disastrous performance in the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
Lillard is coming off yet another strong performance in the postseason in which he willed the Blazers to a six-game elimination by the heavily-favored Denver Nuggets in the Western Conference First Round.
The six-time all-star averaged 34.3 points, 10.2 assists, and 4.3 rebounds during the series after averaging 28.8 points, 7.5 assists, and 4.2 rebounds during the 2020-21 regular season.
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