2023 NBA Offseason Overview Part 1: The dame saga

 2023 NBA Offseason Overview Part 1: The dame saga

The 22-23 NBA season was filled with drama, unexpected heroes, and, for some teams, disappointment. This meant that for some teams and players, it was time for new beginnings. 

The first thing that comes to anyone's mind when thinking of this offseason is Dame leaving for the Bucks.  

Now although this wasn't exactly a surprise, as Portland's postseason and regular-season failures are long documented with only one finals appearance in 18-19 which led to them being swept by a generational Warriors team. The straw that broke the camel's back was Portland's decision not to trade the third overall pick but instead to start the process of a rebuild by drafting  G-league ignites Scoot Henderson. An explosive 6'2 point guard.

Whether you prefer Dame as a veteran potential Hall of Famer or the possibilities that come with scoots upside, there is very little doubt that it was the right time for Portland to start the rebuild/retool. Dame felt that Portland's competitive days were drawing to a close with no immediate second star and an aging Yusuf Nurkic put in his request for a trade.

As well as this trade request rumors also surfaced that Dame would only be happy being dished to the Heat to play with Butler and Adebayo (although recent information reveals that the Heat were never serious about acquiring Lillard and planned to keep Herro).

In the end, it was the bucks who ended up putting together a package the bucks were happy with that looked like this.

Swapping Jrue Holiday, the two-time All-Star they got when Antetokounmpo's future in Milwaukee appeared uncertain, that 2029 pick, and two unprotected first-round picks swaps (2028 and 2030) to the trailblazers for Dame -- the main part of a three-team (for now) mega trade that also sent Ayton to the Blazers, with Nurkic and role players from both Milwaukee (Allen) and Portland (Nassir Little) headed to the also-all-the-way-in Pheonix Suns.

In my opinion, Portland's value from this trade, when taking into account the haul they received for drew holidays shall be discussed in another post in excellent. It's possible they could have got more value a few years ago and started the process of a rebuild slightly earlier. However, I believe that to be cynical this feels like the perfect time for Portland to break out of mediocrity and start building something new 

As for the Bucks, it secures the Greek freaks' future with the team as well as provides them with a second star if Middleton fails to step up this season following his injury as well as making them a top 3 contender.

The next part will contain the Jrue holiday section of the trade as well as discuss the impact of Ayton and Nurkic




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