As expected, Wednesday night turned out to be an extremely special occasion for Milwaukee Bucks superstar Damian Lillard. This was the 33-year-old’s first game back in his former stomping ground as the Portland Trail Blazers hosted the Bucks at the Moda Center.
Blazers fans had been looking forward to this moment since Lillard’s summer departure and they definitely made it count.
Milwaukee Bucks Star Damian Lillard Reacts to Warm Reception
The Portland faithful gave Lillard a minute-long standing ovation as he was introduced as part of the Bucks starting five. The team then showed a couple of tribute videos for their former cornerstone superstar during the first two timeouts in the first quarter, which resulted in even more adoration from the Blazers supporters.
For his part, Dame took it all in:
“I just felt appreciated,” Lillard said, via Jason Quick of The Athletic. “I think that’s what it comes down to: you feel the appreciation and the love. I just kind of stood in it, like man, this is a big deal. Just to take that moment and to have everybody in the building show me that type of love … it’s an acknowledgment of a lot of things during my time here, so I appreciated it.”
As he said, Lillard did so much during his time in Portland, which lasted 11 long years. As they always say, however, everything good comes to an end. This was the case for Dame’s relationship with the Blazers this past summer.
It was just awesome to see the fans show their love and adoration for their former star on Wednesday night. Lillard clearly appreciated the gesture.
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