Shortly after it was announced that the Milwaukee Bucks had agreed to a four-year, $107 million deal with free agent center Myles Turner, it was reported that All-Star point guard Damian Lillard would be waived in conjunction. Coming off an Achilles tear in the first round of the playoffs and appearing to miss a majority, if not all, of next season, Lillard is now an unrestricted free agent.
Considering the timeline of Lillard’s recovery and reports that he’ll take his time to rehab before making a decision, let’s break down several potential free agency landing spots for the clutch, shot-making point guard.
4 Free Agency Destinations for Star Point Guard Damian Lillard
Though Lillard’s two seasons in Milwaukee didn’t go as planned, as he and Giannis Antetokounmpo never quite developed the chemistry that was anticipated, he has an unprecedented opportunity ahead of him.
As a star player in the league coming off a season in which he averaged 24.9 points and 7.1 assists per game, Lillard will have complete autonomy over where he signs.
The Bucks chose to utilize the NBA’s stretch provision, spreading his contract across five seasons instead of over the next two. He can essentially sign for the veteran’s minimum either now or once he’s healthy and still recoup over $100 million from the Bucks due to his buyout, earning over $20 million per year.
As an extremely cheap option in free agency, there will be many suitors for Lillard, with many of them potentially contenders.
Per Aaron Goodwin, Lillard’s agent, “It’s an incredible opportunity for Damian. He receives all of his money guaranteed, and it provides him an opportunity to decide his next destination as an unrestricted free agent. He gets a chance to rehab at home if he chooses to, and be with his family and his kids for the next year. The goal is for him to take his time and make a decision on what his next destination will be.”
Damian Lillard’s agent Aaron Goodwin on his client leaving Milwaukee and his future:
“It’s an incredible opportunity for Damian. He receives all of his money guaranteed, and it provides him an opportunity to decide his next destination as an unrestricted free agent. He gets a… pic.twitter.com/01qi2QlLRF
— Aaron J. Fentress (@AaronJFentress) July 1, 2025
NBA insider Marc Spears, a friend of Lillard’s, said during a segment of NBA Today: “He’s ecstatic. … There’s about a double-digit number of teams calling, interested in him. … When will Dame be back? There’s some speculation that he could be back around the All-Star break. If he signs with a team, it’s probably going to be a two-year deal.”
While age will be a factor in terms of the years of the deal, Lillard was still a high-level shooter and high-scoring point guard last season; if healthy after the All-Star break, he would have an immediate impact and be a factor in the playoff picture.
There is a world where Lillard misses the entire season, as Goodwin mentioned, and sets his sights toward the 2026-27 campaign. Either way, these teams should be considered potential suitors for Lillard either this summer or further down the line.
Miami Heat
Before Lillard was traded to the Bucks in September 2023, his wish list included the Miami Heat at the top. Now entering unrestricted free agency, it’s hard not to see them once again factoring in as a serious contender, especially with them potentially signing him for the veteran’s minimum.
The issue with the Heat is that they aren’t necessarily in a position to make noise in the playoffs — without Lillard, clearly, and arguably with him too. Though combo guard Tyler Herro, who handled much of the ball-handling duties last season, and Bam Adebayo are an All-Star caliber duo, there simply isn’t enough around them to compete for a title. Adding Lillard to the fold wouldn’t change their woes on the wing or lack of reliable depth.
Regardless, Miami is a very intriguing destination. They were a pull for Lillard two years ago, and that desire may still be there to finish his career in the sun with the Heat.
And for Lillard, he’s shown it’s not all about winning championships. During his time in Portland, he demonstrated loyalty and competitiveness, whether his teams had championship potential or not. While the Heat may not reach contender status with a trio of Lillard, Herro, and Adebayo, surrounded by role players, the quality of life and previous interest in Miami could be a major factor.
Golden State Warriors
An Oakland, Calif., native, Lillard grew up rooting for the Golden State Warriors and treasured playing them during their time in his home city. As a final hurrah to his career, he could decide to join a championship-hopeful core and finish in the city where he grew up.
The Warriors made a move to go all-in to maximize the final years of point guard Stephen Curry’s career by acquiring forward Jimmy Butler III at the trade deadline, pairing him with All-Defensive Team forward Draymond Green. The veteran trio worked brilliantly together in the regular season and earned a first-round playoff series victory over the second-seeded Houston Rockets.
But when Curry injured his hamstring in Game 1 of the second round against the Minnesota Timberwolves, all hope for a late-season run was lost. While it’s uncertain what would’ve happened if Curry didn’t get injured, it feels unlikely that this version of Golden State would’ve made it past the eventual NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference Finals.
However, adding another star in Lillard could further raise their ceiling and give them another explosive scorer. Alongside Curry, the two would arguably form the greatest shooting backcourt in league history — closely rivaled by Curry and former Warriors guard Klay Thompson.
Another wrinkle: former Trail Blazers head coach Terry Stotts is an assistant for Golden State, having coached Lillard for nine seasons in Portland. The two had a good relationship and could be all the more motivation that Lillard needs to join a championship hopeful.
San Antonio Spurs
Expect the San Antonio Spurs to be linked in discussions with veterans for the foreseeable future for one reason alone: the chance to play with 7’3″ ascending superstar Victor Wembanyama. He has the potential to be the best player in the league very, very soon and is almost certainly going to be the catalyst behind a winning team in the near future.
There have long been situations of aging stars tying themselves to younger players, such as Ray Allen with LeBron James in Miami and Bill Walton to Larry Bird on the Boston Celtics. The difference with those situations is that both Allen and Bird were primarily contributors off the bench.
Lillard would be extremely overqualified coming off the bench; although he could do it, he may want a starting role. After trading for former All-Star point guard De’Aaron Fox before last season’s trade deadline, the view may be to ride it out with him. If they decide to deal Fox, Lillard would be a very able replacement despite being on the wrong side of his 30s.
The Spurs also landed the No. 2 pick in the 2025 NBA Draft after getting lucky in the lottery, selecting the 6’6″ Rutgers point guard Dylan Harper. However, Harper is only 19 years old and doesn’t project to be a ceiling-raiser on a playoff team just yet.
Lillard would be a tremendously cost-efficient, low-risk addition to a Spurs squad that is taking a calculated, measured approach rather than pushing all their chips in and sending out future assets. The catch with Lillard is that no future assets or young players would need to be burned — he’d be simply additive.
Portland Trail Blazers
Though not seen as anything near contenders — and don’t project to be anytime soon — Lillard was 10 toes down with Portland and only asked for a trade after general manager Joe Cronin made it clear that he was prioritizing the future instead of maximizing the final years of Lillard’s prime.
The enticing part of coming back to Portland, where he spent the first 11 seasons of his career and quickly became a beloved figure in the community, centers on something deeper than just what’s seen on the court.
When Lillard was drafted, much of his immediate and extended family moved to the Portland, Ore., area and remained there after he was traded to Milwaukee, Wis. His brother, Houston, coaches a 7-on-7 football club, aptly called “Team Lillard.” As well, as Spears mentioned, Lillard’s kids still live in Portland, giving him an opportunity to return with them.
Essentially, if Lillard were to come back to the Trail Blazers, he’d be welcomed back in by not only the community but by his actual family.
As he nears the end of his career, it seemed to always be a possibility that Lillard could come back to the place where it always started, especially considering the difficulties on and off the court that he faced with the Bucks.
Portland isn’t a contender, but the loyalty Lillard showed the franchise was undisputed and could prove to be a storybook finish to his career, leaving the All-Star point guard feeling content and appreciated in his final years.
