Damian Lillard hasn’t played a competitive NBA game since the 2025 playoffs. He tore his Achilles with Milwaukee, missed the entire 2025-26 season after returning to Portland, and just turned 36 years old. Most players at that stage, coming off that kind of injury, would be taking it slow. Lillard is already pulling up for deep threes in the gym like it’s Game 5 against Oklahoma City.
A video posted by Lillard on Instagram shows him stepping into an off-balance, contested three — the kind of shot that made him famous. The kind that sends crowds into a frenzy. The caption is just a handshake emoji. Fans online noted the timing: the Blazers just made the playoffs for the first time since 2021, and they pushed the eventual Western Conference champion San Antonio Spurs to five games. Now their injured franchise legend is back in the lab.
It’s hard to know what version of Lillard returns. The Achilles tear is brutal for any player, let alone a 36-year-old guard who relies on burst and pull-up range. The team has not said much about his rehab timeline. But Lillard has never been shy about his confidence. Even sitting in street clothes last season he won the NBA All-Star 3-point contest. That shooting stroke hasn’t left him.
What Portland is getting back
The Blazers signed Lillard to a three-year, $42 million deal in the summer of 2025. It was a homecoming reunion after his brief stint in Milwaukee. But he never played a game on that contract. The Achilles snapped before the season even started. Portland had to figure out life without him — and they did, winning 42 games and sneaking into the playoffs for the first time in four years. That success raises a tricky question: how does a team that learned to play without its star re-integrate that star when he’s healthy?
Lillard’s leadership has never been in doubt. He stayed around the team all last season, traveling, sitting on the bench, mentoring younger guards. The roster now has a different identity than it did when he left. They run more, they share the ball more, and they don’t rely on one guy to create everything off the dribble. Adding prime Lillard might not fit the way it used to. But Lillard at 70 percent might still be the best closer Portland has.
The video is just a workout clip. It’s July. Players post stuff like this every summer. But for Blazers fans, it’s the first real sign that Lillard is moving well, shooting without hesitation, and reminding everyone what Dame Time looks like. He’ll turn 36 on July 15. The Blazers open training camp in late September. That timeline is tight. But Lillard has never needed much time to remind people who he is.
Leave a Comment