Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard competes in the three point contest. Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Joe Cronin Shares Reaction to Blazers Signing Damian Lillard

Originally posted on Portland Trail Blazers on SI
By Jeremy Brener | Last updated Feb 21, 2026 3:00 PM ET

It still doesn't feel completely real that Damian Lillard is on the Portland Trail Blazers roster again.

Even though Lillard signed with the team over the summer, he has not played for the Blazers this season due to his recovery from a torn Achilles. Fans caught a glimpse of Lillard back with the Blazers when he won the Three-Point Contest at All-Star Weekend, but it still hasn't sunk in that he's with the team.

Blazers general manager Joe Cronin got the ball rolling to make it happen and he shared his initial reaction when the team initially re-signed him in an interview with Robert Ohman and Aaron Mesh of the Willamette Week.

"I was by myself. I was in Vegas at Summer League, and I was in my room. So I wasn’t able to celebrate or anything, but I was just so incredibly happy. I just had a big smile on my face, like, OK, we did it. He’s back," Cronin said in his interview.

"Throughout that day and evening, I got so many notes and messages and heard so many stories about how everyone just kind of went nuts. I got notes from other players and things like that: All is right in the NBA again, Dame’s back with Portland. I could feel those ripples and it was really cool."

How Blazers, Damian Lillard Move Passed The Past

Reunions like the one Lillard and the Blazers are having are very rare in sports. Once a break-up happens, there are hardly second chances ever given out. This happens to be an exception to the rule.

The divorce between Lillard and the Blazers back in 2023 was messy. It appeared that Lillard wanted to go to the Miami Heat, but he was then shipped to the Milwaukee Bucks, who happened to give the best offer. Cronin shared that the animosity between the front office and Lillard was overblown.

"I think our foundation was strong enough to weather what we went through," Cronin said. "And there was a mutual respect, even after the trade, that still existed. There was still such a strong mutual respect and admiration for each other—at least me for him, I don’t want to speak for him—but it just wasn’t awkward.

"We sat down a few times at his house and had really good conversations. A little bit of it was us talking about what we wish we would’ve gone differently, but it was mostly just looking forward. What happened happened. From my perspective, it was telling him, look, this organization still thinks the world of you and would love to figure this out. So it was very seamless, probably more so than anyone thinks it was."

Not everything is what it seems in the NBA world, and that couldn't be closer to the truth when it comes to Lillard and his future with the Blazers. He views himself as a valuable member of Portland's team and will likely have a chance to retire with the Blazers, the same franchise that selected him with the number six overall pick in the 2012 NBA draft.

This article first appeared on Portland Trail Blazers on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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