Day: April 13, 2023

Fred VanVleet is widely expected to decline his $22.8 million option with the Toronto Raptors for the 23-24 season, but he wasn’t ready to commit to doing so one day after they were eliminated from the playoffs.

“I know we’re very dramatic around here,” he said. “It’s a tough way to go out. Not too much rush to jump into a decision about opting out. It will take some time.”

Though VanVleet denies the team made a formal offer, he reportedly declined a four-year, $114 million extension before the 2022-23 season.

VanVleet re-signed with the Raptors in 2020 on a four-year, $85 million deal.

VanVleet averaged 19.3 points, 7.2 assists and 4.1 rebounds this season.

Whenever Russell Westbrook faces Kevin Durant, he’s inevitably asked about their relationship given the end of their tenure together with the Oklahoma City Thunder. Westbrook says there are no issues between him and Durant.

“It’s nothing, it’ll be normal for me,” Westbrook said of facing Durant for the first time in a playoff series. “I think people still think there’s some beef or something. There’s no beef of any sort. I think that’s the narrative for media, for people to talk about. But there’s no beef that I got. Nothing but respect for him and things he’s done with his career. Happy to see him back from injury. There’s no beef at all. He knows I’m gonna compete, I know he’s gonna compete, and that’s all it is.”

Durant echoed that point from his former teammate.

“I think Russ is competitive against any player he plays against,” Durant said of Westbrook. “I don’t think it was just specific to me. I think a lot of the fans and the people that were watching, it was high-intensity for them, it was entertainment for them. For us players, it’s just another game, it’s regularly scheduled programming, but Russ is that way. I’ve played with him for so long and watched him for so long, he was that way against everybody, so I don’t expect anything different.”

Damian Lillard isn’t asking to leave the Portland Trail Blazers. He also says he’s not issuing threats, but Lillard made it clear he wants the Blazers to be all-in on a direction.

“It ain’t a threat. I ain’t gonna say I’m putting them on the clock, I’m just saying if those things can’t be done, (if) we can’t do something significant like that then we won’t have a chance to compete on that level,” Lillard said. “Not only will I have a decision to make, but I think the organization will too because at that point, it’s like, ‘Are you gonna go young or are we gonna get something done?'”

Lillard went on to say that Portland needs to be “fully committed” to picking a direction. He also said he recognizes the impact this summer will have on the Trail Blazers and his future with the team.

“I think this is our most important offseason since I’ve been here,” Lillard said.