Damian Lillard spent the first 11 years of his NBA career becoming the face of the franchise for the Portland Trail Blazers. While the team never accomplished its goal of winning a championship, he became one of the more popular and celebrated players in team history, and arguably the biggest star that they’ve ever had.
NBA: Lillard Will Return To Portland On Wednesday
“I think it will be emotional because I care, I loved playing in Portland. I loved living there and still live there… Everything I ever said about my time in Portland playing there, I meant that sh*t. So, yeah, it will be.”
Damian Lillard on if his return to Portland on… pic.twitter.com/TYn5xw62vX
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) January 30, 2024
That made the break-up between the two sides difficult. Lillard preached loyalty for years when Portland struggled in trying to make any deep playoff runs, but there came a breaking point when the team needed to move off of his contract in order to rebuild their roster.
After a drawn out saga that lasted the entire summer, Lillard was finally traded to the Milwaukee Bucks, teaming him up with perennial MVP candidate Giannis Antetokounmpo.
The Bucks have struggled at times to mesh and gel with the new-look roster, and have already fired their head coach despite having one of the league’s best records. But they’ve been able to maintain a 32-15 mark through the first 47 games of the season, good enough for third place in the Eastern Conference.
On Wednesday, the Bucks will be playing their second of a 5-game road trip, and it is a game that Lillard has certainly had circled on the calendar since day 1.
Lillard Anticipates Being Emotional During The Evening
Damian Lillard isn’t ruling out a return to Portland:
“I see there being a time where I play for the Blazers… but it won’t be right now.”
(via @AaronJFentress, https://t.co/rl3byKl0jl) pic.twitter.com/F0iY6EZQgQ
— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) January 30, 2024
The Bucks will travel to Portland tomorrow night in order to take on the lowly Trail Blazers, which will mark Lillard’s first time playing in his old home as a member of a different team.
When speaking to Aaron Fentress of OregonLive, he had the following to comments about his possible emotions for the game:
“I think it will be emotional because I care, I loved playing in Portland. I loved living there and still live there… Everything I ever said about my time in Portland playing there, I meant that sh*t. So, yeah, it will be.”
The Trail Blazers have struggled so far this season, but it was almost expected out of a rebuilding team. They’ve actually won four of their last 8 games to improve their record to 14-33, but they will certainly be heavy underdogs when Lillard and the championship hopefuls come to town.
“My excitement isn’t all about playing against the Blazers. It’s more about having my kids there and my family there and just being able to go home. And I’m excited to play in front of the fans and to see everybody.”
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