July 22, 2025<\/a><\/p>\nLillard played for Portland for his first 11 NBA seasons before he was traded, at his request, to the Milwaukee Bucks before the start of the 2023-24 season.<\/p>\n
A nine-time All-Star, the 35-year-old Lillard is beloved in Portland, known for pointing to his wrist to signify \u201cDame Time\u201d after making big shots.<\/p>\n
But he\u2019s not going to be be back on the court at the Moda Center any time soon.<\/p>\n
Lillard tore his left\u00a0Achilles tendon during a first-round playoff series against the Indiana Pacers and required surgery that will likely sideline him for the 2025-26 season.<\/p>\n
The Bucks waived him earlier this month and stretched the remaining $113 million on his contract over five years.<\/p>\n
\u201cI told him that this year he\u2019s going to be the highest-paid assistant coach in league history because I\u2019ll be putting in the work every day,\u201d Billups said.<\/p>\n
Lillard didn\u2019t rule out the possibility of coming back this season, but Cronin said the team would wait \u201cas long as it takes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMy prideful self would be thinking differently, but I think with age, you get wiser,\u201d Lillard said. \u201cLike Joe said, it\u2019s going to be ultimately what\u2019s best, I think, to take the as much time as possible to make sure that I\u2019m right, that\u2019s what I\u2019ll do.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lillard ranked 10th in the league in scoring (24.9) and assists (7.1) this past season while earning his ninth All-Star selection. But he was limited to 58 games by deep vein thrombosis.<\/p>\n
He averaged a career-high 32.2 points his final season in Portland. That season, he became just the seventh player in NBA history to score more than 70 points in a game when he finished with 71 against the Houston Rockets.<\/p>\n
Portland won only four playoff series during Lillard\u2019s tenure, getting to the Western Conference finals once.<\/p>\n
Lillard always insisted there are no hard feelings over his separation with the Blazers. He wanted to try and chase a championship with Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Bucks, while Portland was focused on developing young players like Scoot Henderson and Shaedon Sharpe.<\/p>\n
Lillard, who has a signature shoe deal with Adidas, hinted during an event at the company\u2019s North American headquarters in 2024 that he might be willing to return to the Trail Blazers. He never imagined that an injury would speed up the timeline.<\/p>\n
The No. 6 overall pick in the 2012 draft by Portland, Lillard holds franchise records for points (19,376) and 3-pointers (2,387). He had five games of 60 or more points with Portland.<\/p>\n
For his career, Lillard has averaged 25.1 points and 6.7 assists. He was the 2013 Rookie of the Year and was named to the NBA\u2019s 75th Anniversary team in 2021. He won a gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics.<\/p>\n
Lillard said his kids finally understood the significance of his homecoming during that drive home over the weekend.<\/p>\n
\u201cI got to a red light, and I just turned around and my daughter was looking at me and I told her,\u201d Lillard said. \u201cAnd she was like, \u2018Wait, so, like, we don\u2019t have to get on an airplane to Milwaukee no more?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"Damian](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/GettyImages-2226394247-784x441.jpg\")
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