The Milwaukee Bucks have had one of the busiest teams in the league in the offseason. After signing a star center in Myles Turner, the team cut ties with All-Star point guard Damian Lillard following the gruesome Achilles injury during the Bucks' first-round playoff matchup against the Indiana Pacers.
Shortly after his release, Lillard signed a three-year $42 million deal to rejoin the Portland Trail Blazers, returning to the team he spent the majority of his career.
While on his Blazers-focused podcast, Aaron Fentress of the Oregonian revealed an interesting wrinkle about Lillard's time in Milwaukee, stating that the All-Star had little interest in joining Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks, instead joining the Miami Heat.
"He didn't want to go there in the first place; he wanted to go to Miami," Fentress said. "He relented and went to Milwaukee because his agent talked him into it, right? It gave him a chance to win." During the episode, the insider explained Lillard's potential link to the Heat.
Lillard requested a trade out of Portland in 2023, with the Heat being his preferred destination. However, he was ultimately dealt to Milwaukee in a blockbuster three team trade that would give Giannis Antetokounmpo another top player to play with.
His time with the Bucks was short-lived, Despite his stellar play averaging 24.6 points and 7.0 assists per in a Bucks uniform, the team's inability to replicate the same success they had in 2021, when the franchise won its first championship since 1971.
Lillard has had a Hall of Fame career so far, his return to Portland makes a full-circle moment in what has been a rocky chapter in his legendary NBA career.