Damian Lillard isn’t ignoring the noise amid reports of turmoil with the Trail Blazers.
Taking to Twitter on Monday, the Portland point guard addressed a new report from The Athletic, which alleged that Lillard “has grown frustrated with the team’s play.”
“These mfs love drama too damn much,” Lillard responded to a tweet that stated, “Lmao when will y’all learn to not report this s—t if @Dame_Lillard ain’t wait it directly?”
The report, which was published Monday, claimed that tensions appeared to be bubbling between the players and first-year head coach Chauncey Billups.
After a dismal 11-13 start to the season, including five losses in the last six games, the Blazers were blown out by the Celtics on Saturday, 145-177. Billups reportedly ripped into players after the loss.
“Competitive fire and pride, that’s something you either have or don’t have. That’s something you can’t turn off and turn on,” Billups said, according to The Athletic. “I’ve never seen a team that needs its bench to inspire our starters. That s—t is crazy to me. It’s supposed to be the other way around.”
Among the other talking points of the buzzy piece: Ben Simmons.
In fact, Lillard reportedly wants to play with the Sixers’ estranged point guard, and now-former Trail Blazers general manager, Neil Olshey, is said to have “discussed the framework of a trade for Simmons” prior to his firing Friday following an investigation into claims of a toxic workplace.
The apparent discussions involved Lillard’s backcourt running mate, CJ McCollum, a first-round draft pick and a young player, per The Athletic.
Simmons, meanwhile, hasn’t played at all this season as he continues to push for a trade out of Philadelphia.
In October, after a summer standoff away from the team, Simmons told the Sixers that he is not “prepared mentally” to play. He has four years and $147 million left on the max contract he signed in 2019.
Portland’s defensive struggles, meanwhile, remain to be an issue. They currently rank 30th in defensive rating. But, adding an All-NBA defender like Simmons could help turn things around in Portland, while freeing up Lillard to focus on offense.
Lillard, the face of the franchise, hasn’t been his explosive self to start the Blazers’ season and is shooting a career-low 39.7 percent from the field. He is currently out with an abdominal injury he dealt with during Team USA’s gold-medal run during the Tokyo Olympics this past summer.
Portland brass said Wednesday that Lillard, a six-time All-Star, will miss at least 10 days.
Lillard reportedly intends to be patient as Portland searches for its next head of basketball operations. Though, his desire for a retooled roster hasn’t changed.
After the Blazers were knocked out in the first round of the 2021 playoffs by the injury-ridden Nuggets, Lillard said he needed “urgency” from Portland management to make moves in order to win a title.
Lillard was the subject of trade rumors over the summer after he expressed his frustrations in July with the way Portland was operating. A few weeks later, he seemed disappointed about the team’s quiet presence in free agency.
At the time, Lillard put a stop to the trade buzz when he pledged his support to the Blazers in August on social media.
“I’m not leaving PDX. Not right now at least,” he said during an Instagram Live.
Lillard could ask for a trade before the Feb. 10 NBA trade deadline, however.
The All-Star guard — who was recently named on the NBA’s Top 75 Players list — is eligible to sign a supermax extension in July, worth $106.6 million over two years, which would tie him to Portland through 2026-27.
