One of the most shocking moves in the NBA this offseason was the Milwaukee Bucks waiving and stretching the contract of Damian Lillard in order to open up enough cap space to sign Myles Turner.
Lillard was the Bucks’ blockbuster addition a couple of years ago to give Giannis Antetokounmpo a co-star to chase more championships with. Unfortunately, that pairing wasn’t exactly fruitful when they were on the court together, and then Lillard tore his Achilles in the postseason, meaning he will miss more if not all of the 2025-26 season.
With Lillard becoming a free agent for the first time in his career though, he was given the ability to choose his next destination. Since the Bucks waived him with two years left on his deal, he was not expected to command much on the open market, making him an intriguing option for a number of contending teams.
Unsurprisingly, the Los Angeles Lakers were among the teams that expressed interest in Lillard. He will not be headed to L.A., however, instead returning to the Portland Trail Blazers, per Shams Charania of ESPN:
BREAKING: Nine-time NBA All-Star Damian Lillard is finalizing a three-year, $42 million contract to return to the Portland Trail Blazers, sources tell ESPN. Deal is expected to include a player option in 2027-28 and a no-trade clause. A storybook reunion home for the 35-year-old. pic.twitter.com/mm1uUtMgO6
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 17, 2025
Lillard now will have a 2025-26 set salary of $70M between his Portland and Milwaukee deals, and a salary of $141M over the next two years ahead of an opt-out in 2027. Blazers officials and Aaron Goodwin of Goodwin Sports Management are finalizing terms this week. https://t.co/m8JqsjzXVE
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 17, 2025
Adding a player of Lillard’s caliber would have been exciting for the Lakers, although considering he will miss most if not all of the 2025-26 season, it wouldn’t have made much sense to use resources to sign him.
The Lakers did not have the ability to offer what Portland did, and he wasn’t really a fit in L.A. even if he was healthy.
A torn Achilles is a very serious injury, especially for a 34 year old that relies on his quickness like Lillard. He is known to have a great work ethic though and is also a fantastic shooter, so there is hope he will be able to regain his All-Star form when he returns.
Lillard is coming off a season in which he averaged 24.9 points, 4.7 rebounds and 7.1 assists while shooting 37.6% from 3-point range. It will be interesting to see how he fits with the young Trail Blazers core, but regardless, it will be cool to see him likely finish his career where it started.
Damian Lillard defends Lakers’ bubble championship
A lot of people hate on the Lakers’ 2020 championship that was won inside the Orlando bubble, but not Damian Lillard. He defended how tough that championship was for L.A. and no one knows better than him as he excelled in the bubble despite losing to the Lakers in the first round as a member of the Trail Blazers.
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