The bidding war between the Toronto Raptors and Miami Heat for the services of superstar point guard Damian Lillard has reached a fever pitch in the last few days, with both sides trying to jockey for position and establish themselves as the frontrunner for one of the best players in the game.
Masai Ujiri and Toronto have jumped out in front of the Heat in recent days, with the Raptors apparently giving the Portland Trail Blazers an offer that is much better than what Pat Riley and Miami were trying to entice their Pacific Northwest friends with.
Miami-centric media has been kicked into overdrive in the last few days, with reports insisting the Toronto buzz is nothing but leverage popping up out of the woodwork. The voices trying to discredit the Raptors and invalidate their pursuit of Lillard are passing the point of absurdity.
Miami radio legend Dan Le Batard said that Miami is not going to overpay to acquire Lillard and cast doubt on Toronto’s willingness to absorb Lillard’s gigantic contract, citing their inability to retain Kyle Lowry after 2021.
Because clearly Lowry back then and Lillard now are in the same tier of player.
Since the moment Lillard decided he wanted to leave the Blazers, he put that team in a very tough spot.
That is because he had one destination in mind: the Miami Heat and only the Miami Heat.
That essentially took away all of Portland’s leverage, which they haven’t been able to gain back in the months since.
Now that other teams are poking around and thinking about making a run at Lillard, the Blazers have a bit of leverage again.
They can force Miami’s hand.
If the Heat really do want Lillard, they will have to offer more than they have before, or else the Blazers will simply make a deal with another team.
Of course, the Heat might not play along because they have their own boundaries and demands.
According to some people, the Blazers have always had the upper hand in all negotiations about Lillard.
But they now also have multiple choices after months of only being able to deal with the Heat.
Will this result in Miami trying even harder to get Lillard
