Path Blazers spoil Damian Lillard's homecoming dealing the Bucks a 119-116 loss – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

PORTLAND, Ore. – The Milwaukee Bucks misplaced their second straight under new head coach Doc Rivers, 119-116, in Damian Lillard’s homecoming towards the Portland Path Blazers on Wednesday evening on the Moda Heart.
Lillard spent 11 seasons with the Path Blazers and is the staff’s all-time main scorer. The Bucks acquired him in a Sept. 27 commerce that, in the end, led former Bucks level guard Malcolm Brogdon to the Path Blazers as they despatched Jrue Vacation to Boston.
Brogdon performed a key position in spoiling Lillard’s return to Portland, as he scored 14 factors and handed out six assists. He additionally neatly fouled Giannis Antetokounmpo on the ground to stop a dunk try that may have put the Bucks (32-16) up with beneath a minute to go, and likewise helped forestall Lillard from placing up a shot that would’ve put the Bucks forward with beneath 10 seconds left. The Path Blazers improved to 15-33.
Field rating:Trail Blazers 119, Bucks 116
Lillard had an opportunity to place the Bucks forward within the ultimate seconds on a sideline out of bounds play that started with 17.6 seconds left. Lillard in-bounded to Brook Lopez and skated round two screens from his heart and Antetokounmpo, however as he acquired some separation from Portland heart Deandre Ayton, Brogdon decisively closed on him as he stepped again behind the three-point line.
Lillard fired the ball again to an open Lopez, who pump faked and put the ball down for a dribble to measurement up a deep three-pointer.
Rivers: We acquired what we had been searching for: Dame. Giannis set a fantastic choose. Dame got here off, I assumed it was gonna pull it, go just a little faster. Brook was vast. I beloved the look again to Brook. Most likely ought to’ve fired proper again to Dame if he wasn’t going to take it. So we acquired what we had been searching for, it simply didn’t work out.
Lillard: I got here again, I acquired the ball, I got here off the display. I seeking to get downhill first as a result of I didn’t wish to simply settle and I used to be in a position to get some area from Ayton and I type of stepped again behind the three-point line. However my man was nonetheless chasing, and I knew he was going to attempt to get a rearview contest and possibly have an opportunity to dam it. So I simply welcomed it and I threw it again. And Brook was making that shot all evening. While you get a top quality shot from shooter, you make that play. So, I threw it again to him simply because at the moment I felt it was the precise play. He simply missed it.
Lillard: I assumed I may’ve shot it. I most likely may have shot it and acquired it off, however after I was stepping again I felt them each coming. I for certain may’ve go the shot off, but when his man is entrance of me and my man is true there chasing me on the facet, I simply was conscious that he needed to be vast open, so I simply made a cross again to him.
As he reloaded, it appeared as if Brogdon had sunk off Lillard simply sufficient to warrant a cross again, however Lopez stepped right into a 30-footer. The shot missed brief with eight seconds left.
Lopez: Clearly our a number of seems to be, we needed to get Dame coming off initially and we had Giannis rolling. It got here again to me and so they closed laborious, so I put it down and on my peripheral I assumed Malcolm (Brogdon) was a bit extra up on Dame then he actually was. So, I simply stepped into it and I took my shot.
Rivers: The look was for Dame, let me say that. He was coming off, we needed him to take that or be aggressive. However Dame made the precise play. That’s one of many issues we’re speaking about. If the man’s vast open, throw it to him. I haven’t seen the movie so I’ve to look at it, I assumed Brook was open for the three after which he pumped faked. That’s most likely when he ought to’ve acquired again off the ball.
Lopez: Oh, completely (I appreciated the look). Wanting again on the movie, clearly Dame was a bit extra open than I assumed he was. However I’m positively assured within the shot for certain.
Milwaukee trailed, 96-91, after three quarters after which turned the ball over six straight instances to open the fourth quarter as Portland stretched the result in 101-91, and the Bucks didn’t make a shot till Lillard hit a three-pointer with 8 minutes 57 seconds to go.
“We gotta do a greater job, simply deal with the ball and getting a shot up,” Antetokounmpo mentioned. “These six possessions most likely price us the sport. If we had scored in two of these possessions we could have gained the sport, who is aware of?”
It was a tough stretch much like what the offense suffered in Monday evening’s fourth quarter in a loss at Denver, as misplaced possessions mounted later within the recreation.
“You already know, proper now, to date within the two video games that I’ve finished we’ve had these two or three stretches in each recreation the place we simply have unhealthy offensive possessions,” Rivers mentioned. “And quite a lot of these unhealthy offensive possessions are turnovers that result in buckets. While you’re taking part in at a skinny line the way in which we’re proper now, til we get our protection proper and issues like that, these change the sport. I assumed that was the most important level within the recreation, these six possessions.”
The Bucks had only one turnover within the first half and 12 within the second, together with a handful of offensive fouls.
The Bucks trimmed the lead all the way down to 115-114 with 1:13 to go after back-to-back star performs by Giannis Antetokounmpo and Lillard. Antetokounmpo blocked an Ayton dunk try from throughout the lane, eliciting recollections of his block of Ayton in Recreation 5 of the 2021 NBA Finals. Lillard adopted that with a double-clutch dunk.
Malik Beasley then pressured a tricky turnover and helped create one other that led to a Lillard-to-Antetokounmpo lob that put the Bucks up 116-115 with 37 seconds left.
However Path Blazers guard Anfernee Simons then hit a operating, contested 10-foot floater within the lane with 17.6 seconds remaining to arrange the anticipation of Lillard heroics.
Jerami Grant hit two free throws with 4.6 seconds left for the sport’s ultimate factors.
Together with Brogdon, Portland had Simons (24), Ayton (20), Grant (18), Scoot Henderson (15) and Duop Reath (10) attain double figures in scoring.
Antetokounmpo led the Bucks with 27 factors and eight rebounds. Lillard (25), Khris Middleton (21), Lopez (19) and Bobby Portis (11) additionally reached double figures for Milwaukee.
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Lillard walked into the Moda Heart off the Bucks’ staff bus, digicam lights illuminating his face and requested the place the customer’s locker room was.
He returned to the world for the primary time as a visiting participant after having carved out a historic 11-year profession as a member of the Path Blazers, turning into the franchise’s all-time scoring and three-point chief. On a broader degree, he helped change the way in which the sport was performed – particularly from properly past the three-point line – with Golden State’s Stephen Curry. And although Lillard was a seven-time all-star and all-NBA choice, he didn’t seize an MVP award or lead his staff to an NBA Finals.
His Path Blazers groups had been aggressive, although, with eight playoff journeys and 4 sequence victories. They made one Western Convention finals, in 2019.
The Oakland native made Portland his residence, through the season and after. He embraced town as a lot because it embraced him – which had him completely satisfied to come back again as a member of the Bucks. Even when he did acknowledge in a 20-minute pregame information convention the entire day was “bizarre.”
Even when the sport itself was, properly, simply one other recreation for him.
“It’s positively one thing that I believe is extra media-driven, the place it’s each time a participant is on a brand new staff and so they come again it’s at all times an enormous factor,” he instructed the Journal Sentinel on Monday in Denver. “Particularly star gamers. So I positively suppose it’s extra of a media-driven factor. The sport is on TV, you already know? So, it’s extra about that.
“I had a fantastic relationship with this metropolis and this fan base. It’ll be enjoyable to get again within the Moda Heart and be in entrance of that crowd and simply type of have that have, you already know what I’m saying? It’ll be enjoyable.”
Was it ever.
Lillard obtained a 1-minute, 6-second standing ovation when he was launched. His teammates gave him the area to soak it in earlier than surrounding him and going by way of their common pregame dance. The Path Blazers then performed a tribute video on the first timeout, and the ovation throughout and after lasted over two minutes.
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The group then performed one other 2-minute video on the subsequent timeout to focus on Lillard’s off-court influence, which additionally drew a standing ovation.
Jim Owczarski (@jimowczarski) on Threads
Regardless that Lillard acknowledged earlier than the sport there could have been some stress between him and the group through the summer time as they labored out a commerce, his remedy and reception Wednesday shouldn’t have been a shock as a result of for him there have been no true laborious emotions.
“It’s not like they traded me and I didn’t know; it wasn’t a damaged residence,” Lillard mentioned.
However in current historical past, there was blended bag of reactions for star gamers of their first video games again with a brand new staff:
Rivers mentioned Wednesday evening wasn’t completely the identical as Garnett’s return to Minnesota, as he felt Garnett’s finest days had handed. He additionally was teaching Patrick Ewing in Orlando when the Corridor of Famer heart returned to New York on the finish of his profession. This was totally different.
“You need him to get pleasure from that second after which play actually properly,” Rivers mentioned of Lillard. “That’s what you need. I can’t think about how laborious this should be to have focus. I actually can’t.”
Rivers additionally mentioned he’s skilled gamers making an attempt too laborious to create a memorable evening, or their teammates break kind and attempt to drive feed the problem. However former teammate CJ McCollum believed there wasn’t going to be any motivation for Lillard to do this.
“I don’t suppose he’s at that time in his profession anymore – large nights simply come naturally,” mentioned McCollum, who was given a 90-second standing ovation by the Portland crowd when he returned for the primary time as a member of the New Orleans Pelicans final yr. “It’ll be particular for him to play there and I’m certain it means lots to him. He’s going to wish to play properly as a result of he’s going again to the place it began however I’m certain on the finish of the day it’s one other recreation that they wish to win.”
There have been no moments when it felt like Lillard or the Bucks performed any otherwise – although he did try a pull-up 34-footer that induced a collective gasp among the many Portland trustworthy. Nevertheless it was a misfire.
He completed with 25 factors on 9 of 23 capturing, together with a 3-for-13 mark from behind the three-point line.
“Greater than something it was simply type of draining, you already know what I imply?” Lillard mentioned after the sport. “Simply all the pieces round it and what it was. I ain’t gonna say I’m completely satisfied that it’s over however I’m identical to; simply coping with all the pieces that got here with it. I’ve been requested one million instances ‘what has it been like being again in Portland?’ and ‘how do you are feeling?’ and all these things. However I actually loved being again however simply the entire spectacle of it’s just a bit bit draining.”
“Terrible.” – Doc Rivers on the Bucks protection to start out the sport, which noticed the Path Blazers shoot 55.6% total and 62.5% from behind the three-point line within the first quarter.
It was simply the second recreation of Rivers’ tenure as head coach, however he clearly has needed to see what the highest 9 gamers of the rotation seem like taking part in collectively. Second-year ahead MarJon Beauchamp and rookie Andre Jackson Jr., who had gotten sporadic minutes beneath former coach Adrian Griffin, didn’t get off the bench Monday or Wednesday evening. Second-year capturing guard AJ Inexperienced had performed lower than these two, however he additionally didn’t see any court docket time.
Not solely does Rivers have to see what his prime 9 veterans can do, however so does common supervisor Jon Horst because the Feb. 8 commerce deadline looms.

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