The transition to being the guy with the Portland Trail Blazers to being more of a secondary option for Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks hasn't exactly been the smoothest for Damian Lillard. His numbers are down across the board, and the offensive upgrade he brought into the team has been more or less a wash with his much of a defensive downgrade he is from Jrue Holiday.
However, as of late, Lillard's play has perked up; Bucks fans are now seeing the guy who tore up the nets with the Blazers and the guy who had himself one heck of an All-Star weekend in Indianapolis. On Monday night, with Antetokounmpo out due to injury, Lillard led Milwaukee to a rousing 113-106 comeback victory over the Los Angeles Clippers, dropping 41 points.
With new head coach Doc Rivers slowly molding the Bucks in his image, one emphasis from the veteran head coach is to utilize Damian Lillard in a much more familiar manner just so the team can help bring out the best in the superstar floor general.
“So when he [Doc] came in, he was just like, ‘You guys don't run this? You guys don't run that? Like, this is stuff we hated to guard against you.' And he just slowly started to put some of those actions in. You know, I think it's helped me settle in even more,” Lillard said in his postgame presser, via Gabe Stoltz of SB Nation's Brew Hoop.
For as much criticism as the hiring of Doc Rivers brought upon the Bucks franchise, these words from Damian Lillard will put those restless fans at ease. Rivers may not be the best coach to helm a team deep in the playoffs with his track record, but with the Bucks, he is able to recognize that Lillard will be key to unlocking this current team's ceiling.
Lillard was long overdue for this kind of explosion; his 41 points against the Clippers marks a significant turnaround from his combined 33 points on 9-32 shooting over the past two games. And with the 33-year old point guard starting to get more comfortable, the league better be wary of these Bucks.
Follow Us
Subscribe