The Portland Trail Blazers seem to be pursuing keeping superstar guard Damian Lillard and continuing his campaign for a championship title.
The six-time All-NBA guard only played 29 games in the previous season, the fewest of his career, as a result of an abdominal surgery that led the team to bench him, per Sports Illustrated.
Despite that, it doesn't appear that the lost season has diminished Portland's dedication to Lillard.
Bleacher Report gave an update that the Portland Trail Blazers are set to offer the elite point guard a contract extension of two years. Sources say that the offer will be "over $100 million."
Lillard presently has a player option for the 2024-25 season on a four-year, $176 million contract. On his current contract, he is expected to make more than $42 million in the 2022-2023 season.
After Portland traded CJ McCollum to the Pelicans before the 2022 trade deadline, Lillard has been the focal point of the team's hasty rebuilding.
Portland is reportedly set to re-sign Jusuf Nurki, Anfernee Simons, and possibly Joe Ingles after trading for Pistons star forward Jerami Grant a week ago. Shaedon Sharpe, a gifted but enigmatic player, was selected by the team at pick number seven in last week's NBA draft.
During Lillard's injury-plagued 2021-22 season, the Blazers finished at 27-55 and ranked No. 13 in the Western Conference. From 2014 to 2021, Portland made the playoffs each year Lillard had no health issues.
Will Durant The Blazers Next Season?
As the 31-year-old point guard enters the latter years of his career, time will tell if the squad can reach that level once more and finally advance towards NBA Finals contention.
This weekend, Damian Lillard proved to fans that he still has the desire to lead the Blazers to an NBA Championship as he appeared to court superstar Kevin Durant via social media to join his squad, per Bleacher Report.
There was no question, as Jusuf Nurkic and Damian Lillard have previously stated, that they would welcome Durant with open arms in Portland.
— Jusuf Nurkić 🇧🇦 (@bosnianbeast27) June 25, 2022
Kevin Durant, currently signed with the Brooklyn Nets, is one of the greatest players to play the game of basketball and a future Hall of Famer.
An Opportunity To Erase Doubts
Despite having one of the most distinguished professional careers of any active NBA player, Durant also had one of the most disputed careers among many of the all-time greats.
With his exceptional skills, KD is undoubtedly a top-10 player in the league now and, arguably, in league history. But many basketball fans have doubts about his accomplishments on the hard court over the years.
According to ClutchPoints, the former MVP has stated categorically that he is unfazed by any external commotion and simply wants to play basketball. Nevertheless, whether he wants it or not, Kevin Durant's legacy will still be judged alongside that of his illustrious contemporaries largely based on not just what he was able to achieve, but the circumstances in which he did so.
Where Durant is going this offseason or even if he leaves the Brooklyn Nets remains unknown. The Portland Trail Blazers, though, may provide the best opportunity for him to redeem his name if he ultimately decides to force his way out.
