Bucks Damian Lillard - PHOTO BY ROB FERGUSON/USA TODAY SPORTS/REUTERS CON
MILWAUKEE, WI (WSAU) – The Milwaukee Bucks were reportedly considering making a blockbuster trade this off-season before their second straight first-round playoff series loss to the Indiana Pacers.
According to The Athletic’s Eric Nehm and Sam Amick, “Had (Damian) Lillard remained healthy, and had the Bucks still fallen in the first round, league sources say there would have been discussions about whether Lillard wanted to remain in Milwaukee.”
“The relationship between Antetokounmpo and Lillard is strong, as is the respect level, but the imperfections of their on-court pairing remained in their second season together,” Nehm and Amick continued. “And with the group’s collective limitations growing more evident by the month, a conversation was looming about whether Lillard and the Bucks might be better off parting ways.”
Lillard, 35, is expected to miss most, if not all, of the 2025 NBA regular season due to his Achilles tear, but Nehm and Amick further report that Lillard is “optimistic” about making a “speedy recovery” after he has surgery at some point this off-season. For the third time in the past four years, the nine-time All-Star has played fewer than 60 games, having started 58 games this season and scoring 24.9 points on average while shooting 37.6 percent from three-point range.
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