Nine-Time All-Star Point Guard Inks Deal with the Portland Trail Blazers
This past NBA season, the Milwaukee Bucks had all the tools to be an NBA Finals contender. Yet, the Bucks were knocked out in the first round in five games by the eventual Eastern Conference champion Indiana Pacers. One of Milwaukee’s centerpieces was nine-time all-star point guard Damian Lillard. On July 1st, the Bucks decided to waive Lillard, stretching the remaining $113 million on his contract in order to acquire and sign center Myles Turner. Now, an unrestricted free agent, the nine-time point guard can choose his own destiny by signing to any team of his choosing. His main goal is to sign with a contender in hopes of making the NBA Finals and competing for the chance to win his first championship. It’s been reported by Shams Charania that the 35-year-old point guard has signed with the Portland Trail Blazers on a three-year deal.
Lillard was selected by the Portland Trail Blazers as the sixth overall pick during the 2012 NBA Draft. During his rookie season, the nine-time all-star became the fourth player in NBA history to be a unanimous winner for the NBA Rookie of the Year Award. He also became the third rookie in NBA history behind Hall of Famers Oscar Robertson and Allen Iverson to tally 1,500 points and 500 assists for the season. Lillard was the fourth Blazer in the franchise's history to win the award. In his sophomore season, the former first-round pick helped Portland make the playoffs. During the first round of the NBA Playoffs, Lillard propelled the Trail Blazers over the Houston Rockets in six games after hitting a buzzer-beater three-pointer. This playoff buzzer-beater for Lillard would be the first of many for the nine-time all-star point guard. With Portland, the nine-time all-star helped the franchise make the playoffs eight times. During the 2018-2019 NBA Playoffs, the Trail Blazers advanced all the way to the Western Conference Finals before being swept by the Golden State Warriors. It was apparent that Lillard wanted to stay in Portland and help this team win a championship in the modern era. Yet, the veteran point guard was not a part of the Blazers' plans, being traded in a three-team trade that sent Lillard to the Milwaukee Bucks, Deandre Ayton, along with Toumani Camara and a 2029 first-round pick, were traded to the Portland Trail Blazers as well as Jrue Holiday and Grayson Allen, Jusuf Nurkić, Nassir Little, and Keon Johnson to the Phoenix Suns.
The nine-time all-star played in 58 games for Milwaukee. He averaged about 25 points, five rebounds, seven assists, and a steal. On March 25, Lillard was ruled out indefinitely with deep vein thrombosis in his right calf. Before the start of the NBA Playoffs, the Bucks announced that Lillard had been cleared of the deep vein thrombosis in his right calf and that he would increase his on-court basketball activity. In Game Four of their first-round series against the Indiana Pacers, he suffered a non-contact left calf injury in the first quarter while attempting to secure a long rebound. He was unable to put any weight on his left leg and had to be helped off the court by head coach Doc Rivers. An MRI the following day revealed that Lillard had suffered a torn Achilles tendon, ending his season, while also putting his availability for the 2025–26 season into question. Yet, the Trail Blazers are very confident Lillard can return to the former version of himself after his devastating injury.
