Dame Trade Time arrives ... and morphs into Revenge of the Small Market Teams

Both facing a franchise crossroads, Portland and Milwaukee hooked up on a seismic Damian Lillard swap (with an assist from Phoenix) to ensure that the NBA offseason goes out with a bang

Who doesn't love surprise endings?

The Damian Lillard Trade Saga and the NBA summer itself came to a dramatic and deliciously unforeseen conclusion Wednesday when the Portland Trail Blazers completed a deal to send the beloved Lillard to the Milwaukee Bucks.

No: Lillard will not be joining the glitzy franchise in Miami that for months was said to be the only team he would willingly join.

Yes: This was a blockbuster of the highest grade to pair Lillard with Giannis Antetokounmpo and a trade we will be dissecting and discussing for months to assess all of its various impacts.

Let's start with a breakdown of What This Means for the five teams most involved in the Lillard trade talks.