Lillard to blaze new trail

Damian Lillard is headed to the Milwaukee Bucks, where he'll team up with two-time NBA Most Valuable Player Giannis Antetokounmpo after a blockbuster trade from Portland.

The three-team trade, which also involves the Phoenix Suns, ends Lillard's 11-year run with the Trail Blazers and a three-month saga surrounding his wish to be moved elsewhere in hopes of winning an NBA title.

Portland will receive All-Star point guard Jrue Holiday and draft picks from the Bucks. The Trail Blazers also land the Suns' Deandre Ayton and Toumani Camara, while the Suns get Grayson Allen from the Bucks and Jusuf Nurkic, Nassir Little and Keon Johnson from Portland.

As with all trades, it cannot be finalized until NBA attorneys review the terms and approve the deal.

"The casuals won't be addressed but the Trail Blazers fans and city of Portland that I love truly will be and they will be addressed truthfully. Stay tuned," Lillard wrote on social media. "Excited for my next chapter!"

Lillard, 33, averaged a franchise-record 32.2 points per game in 2022-23, the third-highest clip in the league, but the Trail Blazers finished 33-49 and missed the playoffs for the second straight season.

Antetokounmpo, led the Bucks to the NBA title in 2021, refused to sign a contract extension until he was convinced Milwaukee were committed to maintaining a championship-caliber team.

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