The Bucks might be looking for their next starting point guard, but their move just opened the door for other teams to snag a major star. Because it didn’t take long for the association's biggest markets to catch onto one of its biggest stars entering free agency.
Within hours of the Milwaukee Bucks’ shocking decision to waive Damian Lillard, contending teams were already making calls. And it's the usual suspects now going after the former Buck, whether it's contending teams looking to make a last-ditch effort at contention, or big markets just looking to make a splash.
According to The Athletic’s Eric Nehm, Sam Amick, and Joe Vardon, teams like the Golden State Warriors, Boston Celtics, and Los Angeles Lakers are among the big market clubs that have expressed interest in Lillard’s next move, and they’re not waiting for the dust to settle.
The NBA's big markets are now inquiring about Damian Lillard
The situation is clear: the vultures smell blood, and they see opportunity.
And to be fair to them, they're not wrong to. Any competent general manager worth his salt would have to do his due dilligence when a star of Lillard's calibre suddenly enters free agency in the offseason.
Admittedly, Lillard’s release was a bit of a cold and calculated move from the Bucks front officw, who have clearly decided to go all-in to keep Giannis Antetokounmpo happy instead of taking a gap year to wait on Lillard to get healthy.
While Milwaukee pivots toward extending their timeline around Giannis Antetokounmpo, the rest of the league is trying to get ahead of the curve, before the nine-time All-Star decides what he wants next. And that’s precisely the key variable now.
According to The Athletic, Lillard received calls “from several contending teams quickly after the news of his Bucks’ ending broke.” As it currently stands, though, it remains to be seen whether Dame wants to sign with a team right now and rehab under their care, or wait until next summer to reassess his options when he’s fully healthy.
It makes sense for Dame to sit tight, take his time, and get his body right. It's not the worst situation in the world, either. It's been clear for a while that he missed his family while playing in Milwaukee, and he can now spend time with them as he rehabs. He’s 34, still owed real money, and remains one of the league’s most feared scorers when fully healthy.
But there’s risk in waiting, too. If he delays and contenders solve their backcourt needs elsewhere, the market could dry up. If he joins a team now, he gets stability, world-class facilities, and a front-row seat to another playoff run -- even if he’s potentially not suiting up until later (or at all).
From the Celtics' point of view, Lillard could perhaps be a high-upside insurance policy in case Derrick White walks, or to give them a scoring punch that Jrue Holiday never could. It also reunites Lillard with his former mentee in Anfernee Simons.
In Golden State, he's a realistic option to be the last-ditch effort to win a ring alongside their new core of Stephen Curry and Jimmy Butler.
And for the Lakers, for whom it’s always star-hunting season, they could pitch him a warm-weather rehab stint that puts him next to LeBron James and Luka Doncic.
What Dame decides now may not change the league immediately, but it will set the stage for what comes next. One way or another, the league’s contenders are circling, and Damian Lillard holds the power to make one of them a whole lot scarier once he returns fully healthy.