It’s the unnoticed aspect of a huge NBA trade.
After spending 11 years with the Trail Blazers, Milwaukee Bucks guard Damian Lillard made the “big boy decision” to seek a trade. Although he has no regrets, the move has been “tough” for the newly single NBA star, who filed for divorce from his college sweetheart, Kay’La Lillard, on October 2, 2023, just one week after he was traded from Portland to Milwaukee.
Because I’m such a family man, it’s absolutely lonely, Lillard recently admitted to Sports Illustrated. “My family is my life.” My entire family would be back there when I came out after the games. My children exiting the playroom. You know what I meаn? My mother, my brother, and my cousins used to reside there.
5Damian Lillard #0 of the Milwaukee Bucks reacts during the fourth quarter against the Philadelphia 76ers at the Wells Fargo Center on February 25, 2024 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.Getty Images
In February 2024, Damian Lillard and his family attended the NBA All-Star weekend in Indianapolis.Instagram/Lillard, DamianThis month in Indianapolis, Lillard’s family attended the All-Star festivities with his three kids, two-year-old twins Kalii and Kali, and five-year-old son Damian Jr. Lillard was awarded the MVP of the All-Star Game and the winner of the 3-point contest.Lillard remarked, “My best friends are Portland residents.” I would then emerge, and we would have dinner. They could stop by my house. I might visit my mom’s house after practice to unwind. That was the way I lived. I meаn, I’m mature, therefore I’m alright. However, it’s undoubtedly lonely. Those folks are what make me whole.
5Damian Lillard’s ex-wife, Kay’La Lillard.Instagram/Kay’La Lillard
Damian Lillard visits the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee with his family.Instagram/Lillard, Damian
After being acquired by the Milwaukee Bucks on September 27, the 33-year-old All-NBA guard continued to explain that he “[doesn’t] have much of a life” since arriving in the city last fall.
Lillard described his regimen as, “Bro, go to practice, go home, watch boxing, play video games.” “Dude, I keep searching for new content on YouTube by typing in [boxing website] FightHype 100 times.
I don’t really have much of a life, really. However, that’s the price you pay for becoming a big boy. You must be willing to do that and work through it.
With his new team, Lillard is intent on sticking with it and getting along with superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo..
In the third quarter of the Milwaukee Bucks’ game against the Philadelphia 76ers at the Wells Fargo Center on February 25, 2024, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Damian Lillard #0 dribbles.Getty Photographs
It’s been a true shift, he remarked. “Choosing to move on from that, wanting a chance to win, after spending 11 years in the same situation. And then coming here to play for Adrian Griffin, our new coach, and him becoming a new member of the squad. It isn’t as though everything was set in stone when I arrived in Milwaukee. The staff was all new.
Naturally, they’re trying to find out how to play with Giannis and how I fit into this team. It’s a process, and I believe that we have both had to adjust to it. It’s how he plays that he is accustomed to. I think there have been times when we’ve played in a fashion that I’m used to. It’s still a work in progress, in my opinion.
Doc Rivers was appointed head coach of the Bucks in January after Adrian Griffin was fired after 43 games in the position..