What would a realistic trade for Damian Lillard look like for the Utah Jazz?
The NBA world is holding its collective breath as we wait and see if and when Damian Lillard is finally traded. As of 4:00 AM ET on Sep. 27, 2023, Lillard is still a member of the Portland Trail Blazers. Will he be by the time you, dear reader, have read this? Who’s to say, but somehow, for some reason, the Utah Jazz remain attached to Lillard, even if he’s not going to the Miami Heat.
There remains a chance, albeit a slim one, that the Jazz somehow land Lillard. Is that the right move? At this point, who knows, he’s 33 years old and isn’t what he was. He’s still better than most at his position but he remains someone that is closer to retirement than his prime. Still, the Jazz need a point guard and he exists as someone who would absolutely improve the team at that position.
Even though he’s heading towards the inevitable decline, he’s still a Top 10, maybe even Top 5 point guard, and paired with Lauri Markkanen and Walker Kessler, he’d really have a crop of running mates that would give him his best shot at winning an NBA title in years.
But what would it take to land Lillard? Well, let’s just assume, since the Jazz have the assets, that there are no other teams involved, and that it’s just a two-team swap. We keep hearing the Trail Blazers want at least one talent they can bring in to add to their core and a few first-round draft picks.
We also know they don’t want Tyler Herro in part due to their over-abundance of draft picks. So no guards. We’ll add players to make the money work momentarily, but with that in mind, we know that the most obvious player who has to go into the trade is rookie Taylor Hendricks. He’s a Top 10 pick and plays a position of need for the Blazers.
Though he’s untested, he’s the best young player the Blazers are going to get, as we should hope that Walker Kessler is off-limits. So here’s the absolute most that should be considered.
So in this seven-player deal, the Blazers get Hendricks, Kris Dunn, Kelly Olynyk, Talen Horton-Tucker, Simone Fontecchio, and Omer Yurtseven (can’t be traded until Oct. 15), as well as three of the Jazz’s original first-round picks in 2025, 2027, and 2029, as well as a 2030 pick swap, with the Blazers getting the higher pick.
The Jazz will end up losing three rotation guys with this trade, with Hendricks, Dunn, and Olynyk all expected to get time this year, as well as three bench guys in Horton-Tucker, Fontecchio, and Yurtseven who gave the team depth. Save for Hendricks, the other five players will either be waived or traded again come the NBA Trade Deadline.
For the Jazz, they get Lillard and their starting five ends up looking fantastic. You have Lillard, Jordan Clarkson, Lauri Markkanen, John Collins, and Kessler as your starting five. Collin Sexton serves as your sixth man, with Ochai Agbaji, Keyonte George, Brice Sensabaugh, and Luka Samanic rounding out your bench. It’s likely that Will Potter, Johnny Juzang, and Joe Hauser’s two-way deal becomes a full-time deal in this situation as well.
The team may not be as deep in this situation, but they’re still plenty deep and get to keep Sexton, Agbai, Sensabaugh, and George. If you have to let Sensabaugh go as well, you can, but you can’t give up anyone or anything more than that.