This is the digital version of The Bounce.
If you want it earlier, start every day with The Bounce delivered to your inbox. Sign up here.
Scroll down to see a Clyde Drexler Olympics shirt that I’m considering buying in Portland.
And speaking of Rip City, Shams is leading off with…
The Latest From Shams
Lillard heads east; what’s next for Holiday?
Months after his initial trade request, the Milwaukee Bucks emerged victorious in the race to acquire Damian Lillard, adding the seven-time All-Star via a three-team deal with Portland and Phoenix.
Sam Amick and I have a ton of details on how things went down, and Zach will get into a lot more analysis below. But now that Lillard has found a home, attention has turned to another key piece of the deal.
The Bucks sent two-time All-Star Jrue Holiday to Portland to acquire Lillard, and I expect the Blazers to be active in the next few days to find a new landing spot for the veteran guard. Teams that had an interest in Lillard, such as Miami and Toronto, could potentially be suitors, though nothing is certain yet. And don’t be surprised if the 76ers are another team that aggressively pursues Holiday, whom they actually drafted back in 2009, as the James Harden situation continues to linger.
We’ll continue to monitor how and when the next major trade domino might fall.
Here’s what Zach has to say on the megadeal.
Five quick thoughts
We could do a whole month’s worth of Bounces based on this move. Here are five tidbits to consider now:
- Title odds: As we noted here, the Bucks have jumped the Celtics and defending champion Nuggets for the best title odds following the trade. Michael Malone will absolutely use this as “nobody believes in us” motivation.
- Grade: I got some questions about the Blazers’ mark being so high in my trade grades. I think Deandre Ayton still has potential, and I’m expecting them to get something good for Holiday. If they mess that up, it’s a lower grade.
- The fit is fine: The cute take to have is pretending Lillard might not fit in perfectly with Giannis and company. Make sure to grab all those straws when you grasp at them.
- Tampering? Methinks Jimmy Butler is trolling for the sake of trolling. I can’t imagine anybody would actually file a claim with the league.
- Film breakdown: Eric Nehm explains why Lillard won’t have any issues fitting in with the Bucks.
Beasts of the East
Bucks might be favorites, but then…
The Bucks were the No. 1 seed last season and found themselves on the wrong side of history when the Heat pulled off the rare and highly embarrassing 8-over-1 upset. Now Milwaukee has added one of the league’s most cold-blooded scorers and clutch performers.
Milwaukee should be the favorites in the East, assuming good fortune with health. But what do we make of the rest of the likely top teams?
- Boston Celtics: There are plenty of questions following the Marcus Smart-for-Kristaps Porziņģis deal. But it’s still a wildly talented team with a lot of recent success and a bona fide star in Jayson Tatum.
- Philadelphia 76ers: I honestly have no idea how to judge them until we get a resolution with James Harden. I am excited to see him potentially cause some uncomfortable vibes; I do love chaos.
- Cleveland Cavaliers: They had an incredibly disappointing postseason appearance with Donovan Mitchell. They needed to beef up the wings and did it. Now can they find a balance between Mitchell and Darius Garland (who is secretly awesome)?
- New York Knicks: This Lillard trade will not stop the Photoshops of Giannis in a Knicks jersey. They’re hoping this crumbles before Giannis’ potential free agency.
- Miami Heat: They were unable to land Bradley Beal or Lillard in trades when the two guards decided they wanted to go somewhere new. The Beal situation was out of their hands completely once Phoenix got involved. But the Heat felt Dame was going to be theirs until he wasn’t. Miami will still be dangerous in the playoffs and can easily get back to competing for the East title, but the Heat also have to look at who could be the next trade target for them.
Speaking of…
Stargazing
Which big name could be on the move next?
Whenever we’ve spent months wondering where a star will be traded and that player finally gets dealt, we immediately look for the next name who might want to be on the move. Are we going to fall into that same trap at The Bounce?
Absolutely. Let’s kick around some names:
- Joel Embiid: A lot of people are wondering about him after the team failed with Ben Simmons and then James Harden. Maybe Embiid will end up being a Sixer for life, but eventually, stars get frustrated with never progressing. There’s a lot of pressure on Nick Nurse and Daryl Morey to figure this out.
- Giannis Antetokounmpo: This is just other teams hoping this Lillard thing doesn’t work. They’ll hold on to his summer comments as a beyond optimistic “maybe.”
- James Harden: We know he wants to go to the Clippers. We know Morey isn’t interested in that. We also know how Harden feels about Morey. Harden is still a high impact player who wants out.
- Trae Young: This was more of an early summer musing with a lot of confusion regarding the Hawks organization. I doubt they have to seriously worry about this for another couple years, if ever. But teams will be on the lookout for signs of discontent.
- Pascal Siakam: Plenty of trade rumors already for him this summer, but a lack of commitment from Siakam following hypothetical trades tanked a lot of those ideas.
- Zach LaVine: The Bulls would probably love to get out from under this money. Not sure there is a deal that truly works for both sides if his health is in question.
- Karl-Anthony Towns: Assuming health, the Wolves will get a true idea of whether their two big men work in a world in which you want an open floor for Anthony Edwards.
- Zion Williamson: Who the hell knows at this point? We just want to see him on the court.
Portland Reacts!
On-the-ground reporting (sort of)
I’ve been in Oregon following my trip to Japan and decided to spend a couple of days in Portland for some relaxation.
I wasn’t there more than 45 minutes before Shams’ tweets started blowing up my phone. I facepalmed at my own brash confidence that I wouldn’t need to do any work, fired up Slack and figured out how to get those trades grades done.
I stood on the sidewalk in front of a vintage clothing store called The Recycled Plant, staring at a 1992 Barcelona Olympics Clyde Drexler jersey, forming my thoughts and getting my fingers firing on my phone screen.
After that, I grabbed an impromptu haircut. Here are some real-time Blazers fans reactions from the walk there and the cut itself:
“I’m in a state of shock, bro. We traded Dame. It actually happened.” — man with hands on his head walking into the barber.
“Is Deandre Ayton even good?” — man to his friend on the street.
“What can we get for Jrue? It won’t mess up us getting a top pick, will it?” — another guy getting his haircut.
“This clears the way for Scoot to get Rookie of the Year.” — man walking his dog as they popped into the barber to say hi to friends.
“I’m just glad Pat Riley didn’t get his way.” — guy outside a coffee shop.
“F—!” — guy on the street looking at his phone. I’m just assuming the expletive was about Dame.
Above all, this Kevin James meme finding its way into the news made my day more than anything.
Bounce Passes
Tom Haberstroh says the NBA All-Star draft predicted this Dame-Giannis pairing.
We’re really doing this again. All eyes on Ben Simmons in Brooklyn this coming season.
The Warriors are trying to bring a WNBA team to the Bay Area.
The Wizards believe they’re leveling up with their new plan for the roster.
If you can, please support our friend and colleague Tas Melas and his family by donating, sharing or just keeping them in your thoughts and prayers.
Hitting Pause
Due to the Lillard trade news, we’re going to hold the Friday movie review of “Sunset Park” for another day. In the meantime, enjoy this highly disturbing basketball scene from Halle Berry’s “Catwoman.”
(Top photo of Damian Lillard: Soobum Im / USA Today)
