Damian Lillard spent the summer flirting with the idea of leaving the Trail Blazers.
At one point, he met with Lakers stars LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports:Lillard did not categorize the meeting as a platform for a recruiting presentation, but rather an information-gathering forum among respected peers.
“’Bron asked what I was thinking with my situation, and I told him what I’m telling you: that I just want to be in a position to win it all,” Lillard told Yahoo Sports. “He painted the picture to me that if I were to leave, the situation could look like this. He didn’t tell me to come to L.A., and he didn’t say anything to me that I didn’t already know other than what it could look like. I told him, ‘I know if I were to play with y’all, I know it would work out because of my skill set,’ and who I am and who they are.”
Without trading LeBron or Davis, the Lakers had no feasible way of acquiring Lillard. Los Angeles already depleted its assets to get Davis.
But if Lillard wanted to demand a trade to a different destination franchise, he could have. He didn’t.
Still, Lillard’s recommitment to Portland has been treated as potentially temporary, a willingness to give new Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups a chance then reevaluate next offseason.
This sounds deeper, though. “I don’t feel in my heart that that’s who I am or where I belong” are strong words, words that get to the core of Lillard’s value system. That’s especially true because they match years of Lillard sounding this way.
Though he could always explore his options again, the more Lillard talks, the more-permanent his commitment to Portland sounds.
