Milwaukee Bucks star point guard Damian Lillard is one of the best point guards the league has seen in the last decade. Lillard has had a great career, winning NBA Rookie of the Year and leading the city of Portland and the Trail Blazers to new heights.
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But those days are long behind him. Lillard, entering his second year in Milwaukee, is coming off a tough season in the Beer City.
Injuries have taken a toll on the 34-year-old, and he’s also had to deal with personal issues. While last season wasn’t a pleasant one for the eight-time All-Star, Lillard believes he’s still at the top of his game.
“I’m not a player who falls apart,” Lillard said. Jim Owczarski of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel“I live a clean, good, healthy life, so I can do it. I can do the same (expletive) thing I did two or three years ago. I can do it now.”
By his standards, Lillard is coming off a pedestrian 2023-24 season in Milwaukee after averaging a career-best 32.2 points per game in his final season with the Trail Blazers; that number dropped significantly to 24.3 points per game.
While it was predictable, being paired with one of the best players in the league, Giannis Antetokounmpo, it was clear that Lillard was not the same player we knew.
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Yet if you ask the seven-time All-NBA player, he believes he was still at the top of his game last season despite all the personal issues and injuries he dealt with.
“I think when the trade happened, everybody was like, ‘Well, Milwaukee’s going to win,’ and I think when things weren’t always going the way they wanted or thought they were going to go, and I wasn’t looking like I did in Portland, I was like, ‘Oh, what’s going on with Dame? Why isn’t Dame doing that?’” he said. “But for a lot of the season, I was still averaging 26 points. If you really think about it, what standard do you hold me to if I’m scoring 26 points and averaging seven assists and I’m not feeling great? I go through a lot. That’s just the truth.”
Lillard’s season was marred by numerous injuries, including calf, leg, ankle, groin, Achilles tendon, and Achilles tendon injuries. Additionally, Lillard had to go through a divorce during his first year in a new city.
Last season was a whirlwind for the 34-year-old. However, with all that behind Lillard, the NBA A member of the 75th anniversary team looks to right all the wrongs of last season and lead Milwaukee back to the promised land.
“The fact that we’re here and we’re under the radar is perfect because they won’t think anything of us and then they’ll say… You have to face the truth, eventually. That’s how it usually goes,” he said.
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