Damian Lillard resisted to the idea for many years, but it looks like he’s finally ready to leave the Portland Trail Blazers. Back in the day, LeBron James also left the Cleveland Cavaliers to pursue an NBA championship with the Miami Heat.
The South Florida franchise could once again be the landing spot for a superstar seeking his first championship. Last season, Jimmy Butler and company made the Finals but fell short against Nikola Jokic’s Nuggets.
Dame may have a legitimate chance to succeed in Miami, who seems to need a player of his caliber to get the job done next time. Dwyane Wade recently addressed this situation, but he was very respectful with whatever Lillard decides.
Dwyane Wade talks about the Damian Lillard situation
In an interview with Bobby Krivitsky of Sports Illustrated, the Heat legend was asked what his advice for Lillard would be, whether to spend his entire career with just one team or joining a team with more chances to win. Wade put the example of LeBron’s decision in 2010, but said Dame has to do what he feels like:
“I don’t know. I don’t think you need to tell Dame that — it’s his career, and he has, you have a vision for how you want it to go, and you try to accomplish that. And Dame has been trying to accomplish his career the way that he wants to see it go. And he has been wanting to see it go in Portland. That’s why he’s there. And so that’s why he’s been there.
And there’s always gonna be talk about what someone should do. Kevin Garnett did this; this guy did this; LeBron went and did this. Dame has to do what Dame wants to do and understand that he gets one of these careers. You get one shot at this. And how does he want to see it go, how does he want to see these next, I don’t know, five to 10 years go; however much longer he’s got. I don’t even know what year he’s in.
And that’s something that we’ll all have to wait and see. And everybody has to respect whatever that decision is. And whether you like it or not, you have to respect that the decision will be all what Dame wants to see for Dame’s career and no one else’s.“
D-Wade has a very fair point and it reflects how respectful he is with others’ decisions. Lillard is the owner of his own career, so no one else should be making decisions for him nor judge him. His desire seems to be to pursue a ring in Miami, but the Heat have to meet the Blazers demands to make it happen.