Milwaukee Bucks: Damian Lillard Makes Jubilant Social Media Post on Trail Blazers Reunion, Welcomed by ’90s NBA Great

Affectionately exclaiming the city’s nickname – derived from broadcaster Bill Schonely’s excited utterance over 50 years ago – Lillard joins a team full of different faces versus the roster he left in 2023.

Forward Jerami Grant remains. Then coming off his rookie season, guard Shaedon Sharpe is also still there. Trendon Watford. Matisse Thybulle. A few other lesser known names. That’s it – not an insignificant amount of change for two seasons.

Lillard’s old backcourt mate, Anfernee Simons, was traded to Boston earlier this offseason. Ironically, that trade brought the Blazers Jrue Holiday from the Celtics, completing the circle of Milwaukee’s disastrous deal.

Porltand has a new, mostly younger group. Still several years off from being legitimate contenders, the Blazers will try to build on a 36-46 record last season as they resurface from a rebuild. They could be a play-in team this year. They should take a another step forward when Lillard returns in 2026-27.

For now, though, player and franchise are just happy to be reunited – quite possibly for good, given that Lillard is 35 to begin the three-year, $42 million deal and has a no-trade clause.

Along with many grateful fans, former Super Sonics star Detlef Shrempf, who finished his career with two years in Portland, congratulated Lillard in the comment section.

It may seem odd that Lillard would rejoin a franchise where he asked out not too long ago, but his is a unique case in today’s game where players constantly change teams. He and the city have cultivated a rare loyalty. When he finally did request the trade, it was only with the team clearly headed for a rebuild. Many thought Lillard had wasted too much of his prime in Portland already.

While he was loved during his short time in Milwaukee, there’s nothing like the bond between a star and the franchise that drafted him. Already the Blazers’ franchise leader with 19,376 points, Lillard will add to that total when he returns to the floor two seasons from now. He currently sits 42nd in scoring all-time, 8th among active players.