Trail Blazers trade Damian Lillard to Bucks

According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN on Wednesday, there was a blockbuster National Basketball Association trade involving the Portland Trail Blazers, Milwaukee Bucks and Phoenix Suns. The most notable player in the deal is 33-year-old point guard Damian Lillard of Oakland, California. He is considered one of the greatest Trail Blazers of all-time.

Lillard is the only player or asset the Bucks are receiving in the trade. Portland is receiving point guard Jrue Holiday of Los Angeles, California, a first round pick in the 2029 NBA Draft from Milwaukee, and center DeAndre Ayton of Nassau, Bahamas and power forward prospect Toumani Camara from the Suns. Phoenix is receiving center Jusuf Nurkic of Tuzla, Bosnia and Herzegovina, shooting guard Keon Johnson and forward Nassir Little from the Trail Blazers, and shooting guard Grayson Allen from the Bucks.

All-time, Lillard is the Trail Blazers points leader with 19376. He also is number one all-time in Portland in three-point field goals (2387) and free throws (4427). The seven-time All-Star was the 2013 NBA rookie of the year. In 2022-23, Lillard averaged 32.2 points per game, 7.3 assists per game, and 4.8 rebounds per game. He had a field goal percentage of .463, three-point percentage of .371, and free throw percentage of .914. On February 26, Lillard became the eighth player to score 70 points in a game (had 71), in a 131-114 Portland win over the Houston Rockets. 

Holiday is joining his fourth NBA franchise. He was previously with the Philadelphia 76ers, New Orleans Pelicans and Bucks. While with the 76ers in 2012-13, and Bucks in 2022-23, Holiday was an All-Star. Holiday averaged 19.3 points per game, 7.4 assists per game, 5.1 rebounds per game, 1.2 steals per game, and had a field goal percentage of .479, three-point percentage of .384, and a free throw percentage of .859 in 2022-23.

Ayton has been with the Suns the last five seasons. In 2022-23, he averaged 18 points per game, 10 rebounds per game, 1.7 assists per game, and had a field goal percentage of .589, three-point percentage of .292, and a free throw percentage of .760.

Nurkic is joining his third team after three seasons with Denver (2014 to 2017) and the last seven seasons with the Trail Blazers. In 2022-23, he averaged 13.3 points per game, 9.1 rebounds per game, and 2.9 assists per game, alongside a field goal percentage of .519, three-point percentage of .361, and a free throw percentage of .661.

Allen is joining his fourth team after one season with the Utah Jazz (2018-19), and two seasons each with the Memphis Grizzlies (2019 to 2021) and Bucks (2021 to 2023). In 2022-23, Allen averaged 10.4 points per game, 3.3 rebounds per game, and 2.3 assists per game, and a field goal percentage of .440, three-point percentage of .399, and free throw percentage of .905.

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