Portland Trail Blazers superstar Damian Lillard stood out like a sore thumb when sitting courtside at the Barclays Center for Game Three of the Brooklyn Nets’ playoff series against the Philadelphia 76ers.
Although he was there as a spectator, one NBA executive believes it could turn into a blossoming relationship as a player next season.
And it could involve a sneaky trade with Ben Simmons.
Lillard has previously gone on record to praise some of the Nets’ players in previous years, describing Cam Johnson as “nice” and Mikal Bridges as his “favourite small forward in the league” in a Yahoo Sports interview back in 2021.
Thu, 27 Apr
Thursday April 27th
MORE COVERAGE NBA Wrap: Insane winner keeps season alive after trade chatter; 47pt explosion ends wild comeback ‘I’m out’: Two words say it all as villain’s LeBron dig backfires; star’s historic explosion ‘This is insane’: NBA playoffs madness as Heat star ‘goes crazy’ in record stunner “I’m just not sure they have the pieces to get him, but they should try. “The picks they have coming in aren’t great. “It would probably take Ben Simmons’ contract to make the numbers work, but you’d have to attach picks to him on top of the picks you need for Lillard.” In terms of the picks Brooklyn has to play with, they’ve got several first-rounders acquired thanks to trading away Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving to the Phoenix Suns and Dallas Mavericks respectively. If the Nets opt to trade Simmons, Scotto stated they would likely have to throw in further draft picks as the former Sixers star is owed a combined $AUD118 million through the next two seasons. With Lillard turning 33 in July and coming off two seasons with no playoff appearances, it could be a case of now or never if he wants a fresh start with a new team.
