Sad news for Portland trail blazers: He we not return

Upon his return to Portland following his offseason trade to the Bucks, Damian Lillard was ecstatic.

(AP) PORTLAND, OREGON When Damian Lillard was presented for Milwaukee’s Wednesday night game against the Trail Blazers, a grateful Portland audience gave him a long standing ovation.

Lillard, who still owns a house in Portland and played 11 seasons with the Blazers, made his first trip to the city since being traded to the Bucks in the offseason.

Cheers were raised for Lillard by the sold-out crowd at the Moda Center. Before his teammates from the Bucks danced around him, he responded by praising the crowd and raising his hands in the shape of a heart.

But the Blazers’ unexpected 119-116 victory over the Bucks at the conclusion of the night dampened the euphoria.

Before the game, Lillard described his comeback as unreal at a press conference.

“It was almost like you forget that this is road game, even though I knew I was coming here as a visitor once I got to my house and took my son to school this morning,” he told more than thirty reporters.

Before being moved to New Orleans in 2022, CJ McCollum, a former teammate of Lillard’s, played nine seasons with the Blazers. Lillard claimed to have spoken with McCollum that morning.

“Hey man, embrace it,” he said when he called me. It will be a tearful experience. We invest both our time and our labor. We gave everything we had for many years, and even though we were appreciated, we had our moments. “It was that moment, I felt the appreciation for everything that we put into it,” he stated upon his return, according to Lillard.

Lillard, an eight-time All-Star, led the Blazers in scoring last season with an average of 32.2. When he finished with 71 points against the Houston Rockets in February of last year, he became just the seventh player in NBA history to score more than 70 points in a game (that total has since climbed to nine). When he played for the Blazers, he averaged 25.2 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 6.7 assists.

However, during Lillard’s career, Portland only advanced to the Western Conference Finals once and won just four postseason series. The squad fell way outside of the postseason picture for the second straight year last season, going 33-49.

Lillard had an average of 25.1 points and 6.8 assists while playing for Milwaukee. After just 43 games, Milwaukee sacked coach Adrian Griffin last week and brought in seasoned coach Doc Rivers with the intention of winning another NBA championship.

Being a member of a team that has “tasted winning and wants to get back to that” has been fantastic, according to Lillard.

It’s been amazing to play alongside Giannis (Antetokounmpo). Playing alongside two-time MVP, Defensive Player of the Year, and MVP of the championship Finals, among other top 75 players, Lillard said, “I think I just get to feel what a luxury it is to have a guy as dominant as he is on the floor.”

He wouldn’t completely rule out going back to the Blazers in the future.

A young fan brandishing a placard that read, “Go get your ring then come back home,” was pointing it toward Lillard from the stands.

“I think that’s how my career would end in my mind because of how I feel about Portland, how I feel about the organization here, and my time that I spent here,” the man stated. I’m just in this space right now, like, this is where I am. Milwaukee is where I am. Our squad has the potential to compete for many years to come, and I want that chance as well.