A Milwaukee Bucks team source provided some insight this week into the decision to waive injured guard Damian Lillard and sign center Myles Turner in free agency this past offseason.

Kevin Love is one of the funniest NBA stars on social media. His recent highlights include trolling LeBron James for "The Second Decision," calling himself a "math problem" after signing with the Utah Jazz and mocking Pat Riley and Jimmy Butler's fallout in Miami.

The unprecedented waive-and-stretch for Lillard was widely panned around the league, but it's viewed much differently internally. Team sources were concerned about whether Lillard, at 36, could return to the player he was -- and did not want to waste a year of contention in a conference decimated by injuries.

The Trail Blazers' young core, including Scoot Henderson, Shaedon Sharpe, Deni Avdija and Toumani Camara, pushed for a possible play-in spot last season rather than tank for draft position.

Toumani Camara was one of the last picks in the 2023 draft and a throw-in for the Damian Lillard trade that summer. Now he's a foundational piece for the Portland Trail Blazers.

More than 30 people were charged on October 23 in two related federal gambling investigations involving the NBA and organized crime. Among those charged were Chauncey Billups, a Hall of Fame player and head coach of the Portland Trail Blazers,