A Deep Dive into Damian Lillard’s move to the Milwaukee Bucks
Just over a week ago, the months-long Damian Lillard trade saga finally came to an end as the Milwaukee Bucks swooped in and acquired Lillard in a three-team deal along with Phoenix for a slew of assets.
Here is a look at the entire deal:
While Milwaukee solely received Lillard, the Blazers picked up Jrue Holiday, Deandre Ayton, Toumani Camara, the Bucks’ 2029 1st, and swap rights in 2028 and 2030. Phoenix added Jusuf Nurkic, Grayson Allen, Nassir Little, and Keon Johnson. Just a few days later, Jrue was sent to Boston and Portland received Malcolm Brogdon, Robert Williams III, along with 2024 and 2029 1sts.
Milwaukee Bucks:
There’s a lot to unpack here so let me jump straight into it. With this trade, the Bucks have essentially improved their offense while sacrificing their defense, a recipe that hasn’t worked in the past (Brooklyn with Harden). However, on paper, Milwaukee’s offensive gains are notably greater than the defensive setback.
First and most noticeably, having Lillard floating on the perimeter will create plenty of space for Giannis to attack the rim and force the defense to pick their poison with either a Lillard deep bomb or Giannis near the rim. Specifically, doing this off a pick-and-roll action will wreak havoc on NBA defenses. This is a set that Milwaukee has been trying to unlock for years, and ironically also a reason that they originally traded Eric Bledsoe for Jrue Holiday. But, Holiday’s recent shooting struggles showed Milwaukee that the roster needed more tooling.
Secondly, there’s no way to sugarcoat it, Damian Lillard is a defensive liability and both he and the Bucks will have to adapt significantly on that end of the court. Playing for historically bad Portland defenses all his career, Lillard is not familiar with the defensive effort required to play championship-level basketball. Luckily for Dame though, having Giannis by his side will alleviate him of carrying the offensive burden, hopefully leading to him exerting more on the defensive end. I can see the Bucks’ big men having inflated block numbers as guards will blow by Dame just to meet Giannis or Lopez at the rim. But, the guard matchup will be a serious problem against contenders like Phoenix and Golden State where Bucks’ rotation players like Pat Connaughton will have to find a third lung to keep chasing shooters around screens to make up for Lillard’s deficiencies. This should make for some pretty interesting matchups.
Portland Trail Blazers
The Blazers executed the Lillard trade demand perfectly. Fans thought Dame to Miami was a foregone conclusion, but Portland wasn’t happy with the deal and played their leverage expertly, getting a better trade package by just waiting for a few more months. With that being said, this team will be at the bottom of the standings for a few years, although I am excited to see how the Scoot — Ayton tandem will work out.
Phoenix Suns:
Earlier in this article, I alluded to how Brooklyn’s superteam faltered due to a lack of defense among other factors like injuries. The team that Phoenix has put together is slightly worse on paper than those early 2020s Nets. As someone who wants to see Booker succeed in Phoenix, I don’t see the vision with this move. Jusuf Nurkic will not be stopping anybody at the rim and without a facilitator like Chris Paul, I’m concerned about potential chemistry issues and an uneven shot distribution among the star trio. I see this going wrong in so many more ways than it can go right.
Last year, the Suns were defeated in six games by Denver in the playoffs, as Jokic was able to have his way with Phoenix’s defense. This year, instead of Ayton guarding Jokic, it will be Nurkic, a noticeable downgrade. So, I can’t help but question what problem this trade really solves. From a managerial standpoint, the Suns have no draft assets for the next 7 years. This trade is a bold move, and I wish them the best of luck, but it’s bound to be a challenging journey to success.
Boston Celtics:
Taking a macro-level look at Boston this offseason, their moves boil down to losing Malcolm Brogdon, Robert Williams, and Marcus Smart, to acquire Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday. It’s tough to say if this results in a net improvement for the team, but it’s fair to say a lot of the concern hinges on the health of Kristaps Porzingis.
Regardless of Porzingis’s health though, Boston will remain a contender and will have to compete with the likes of other top-tier teams like the Bucks, Lakers, and Nuggets. In past years, Boston relied on Robert Williams to slow down Giannis, a matchup that was reasonably reliable. With that no longer being an option for the Celtics, I am very interested to see how their defense-oriented head coach Joe Mazzulla, will adjust his matchups to keep teams guessing.
