The Miami Heat was Damian Lillard’s favourable destination when he requested a trade to the Portland Trail Blazers. Hence Pat Riley and the Heat were the leading contenders to land the superstar. While Blazers general manager Joe Cronin respected Lillard’s idea and his contribution to the franchise, he simply couldn’t come to terms with what the Heat were offering in exchange.
Cronin had said that he was up for a trade but for the right price and the Heat never seemed to manage to intrigue them therefore Milwaukee Bucks and Phoenix Suns came forward and Cronin accepted a three-team trade.
Lillard is now paired up with Giannis Antetokounmpo and Khris Middleton and the Bucks are suddenly the favourites to win the NBA Championship next season. They surely have the deadliest duo in the league right now.
Former NBA Champion and analyst Kendrick Perkins feels that the Heat and Pat Riley got finessed for the first time in NBA history. Riley is considered a great executive and the way he has struck deals has made him one of the shrewdest people in the league. He is the reason LeBron James, Shaquille O’Neal, Gary Payton, Alonzo Mourning and Chris Bosh played for the Heat.
“I feel sorry for their loss. Look, Pat Riley, for the first time, he got finessed. He thought that he could wait it out. He thought that Portland was gonna fold and give in to the package that he wanted them to give into. And they [Blazers] didn’t! They said, ‘We’re not waiting on you anymore,” Perkins stated.
He is also concerned how the Heat lost pieces to make room for Lillard and ultimately failed to land him. So Perkins isn’t so sure that the Heat will have another deep playoff run like last season with the Bucks and Celtics adding crucial pieces to their team.
“Where does the Miami Heat go from here? … I don’t know if they can have another spectacular run like they did last season. … The Miami Heat are not the ones that’s hunting no more. They’re gonna be the hunted,” Perkins added.
Heat superstar Jimmy Butler added fire to the topic when he suspected foul play from the Bucks around this blockbuster trade. “Yo NBA man, y’all need to look into the Bucks for tampering… Y’all didn’t hear it from me, but I heard it from somebody,” Butler wrote on his IG.
It will be tough for the Heat to fight with the Milwaukee Bucks and the new-look Boston Celtics. The Celtics and the Heat have played the last four Eastern Conference Championships. It will be interesting to see how the Heat copes up from here.
