The Damian Lillard saga was always to be a long one after the seven-time All-Star demanded a trade from his longtime Portland Trail Blazers. On Monday, chief executive Joe Cronin assured reporters that the organization doesn’t care how long it will take.
“We are going to be patient,” he said. said. “We are going to do what is best for our team. We’ll see, you know, how it lands. And if it takes months, it takes months.
His comments came during a press conference held regarding Portland’s new five-year, $160 million contract with forward Jerami Grant.
As this was Cronin’s first time speaking with reporters since news of Lillard’s request surfaced on July 1, it’s no surprise that the future of a player who makes the team since 2012 has taken center stage.
Although Cronin chose not to go into specifics, he told reporters that he and Lillard had not spoken since the trade request became public.
All eyes on Miami
Cronin and Portland are “open for business anywhere in the league” when it comes to Lillard, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. But the 32-year-old has made it so clear that he hopes to land with the Miami Heat his agent has reportedly warned other interested teams he won’t be happy anywhere else.
Cronin revealed Monday that he has not spoken to Lillard since making the request. Despite the lack of conversation, he maintained a friendly front as he took responsibility for failing to achieve the goal of winning “as quickly as possible”.
“I didn’t do what I needed to do. In that sense, I feel like I failed Dame,” he said. said.
He even went so far as to say he understood why Lillard “I would like to go somewhere else.
Theoretically, the veteran guard could be an incredible choice for the Heat, but it’s unclear exactly how happy the two sides can be in a deal to make it happen.
Lillard is coming off a season in which he averaged 32.2 points for the Trail Blazers. Without him, the team will need that kind of production and then a bit to improve.
“In any deal, the goal is to get the best result. It could be more about a winning player now. It could be about a young player and picks. It could be just picks. There are no defined parameters”, Cronin said Monday.
Although Cronin didn’t elaborate, Portland would be “looking for about four first-round picks and two quality players. But to get there, you might have to add a third team to the equation,” according to Aaron Fentress of The Oregonian.
As these private discussions continue to develop, it seems likely that Lillard’s next stop will remain a topic of public conversation deep into this summer.