Source: Stacy Revere / Getty
The Milwaukee Bucks’ quest to win another championship got much tougher as ESPN’s Shams Charania confirmed Damian Lillard has suffered a season-ending injury after tearing his left Achilles.
The injury came in game four of the opening round of the Eastern Conference playoffs against the Indiana Pacers.
Early into the game, Lillard was going after a rebound from a Gary Trent Jr. three-pointer when he instead swatted it to a teammate before he stumbled onto the court. He grabbed his left ankle as play continued on the other end of the court. Kyle Kuzma eventually helped him up, but he was still unable to put any weight on that left leg, so the coaching staff ushered him off the court.
He’d be ruled out for the remainder of the game, which was tough to watch after he worked so hard to get back after missing a few weeks due to deep vein thrombosis in his right calf.
Fans were already worried when he eventually left the arena in a walking boot and on crutches, which Bucks head coach Doc Rivers echoed similar sentiments.
“Obviously it’s lower leg, and just being honest, it’s not very promising,” Rivers said postgame. “I knew it right away. I felt bad for him; the guy tried to come back for his team. I just felt bad for him.”
Lillard’s superstar teammate Giannis Antetokounmpo had the same sinking feeling as fans when he realized Dame couldn’t put any weight on that left leg.
“When you see a guy like that not able to walk on his own, you know this might be serious, and then you kind of hope that it’s the best-case scenario,” Antetokounmpo said. “And for now, we just hope it’s the best-case scenario for him, for his health. That’s pretty much it. It’s tough.”
Now that the Pacers are up 3-1 in the series, Lillard’s loss could also signal the end of Antetokounmpo’s tenure in Milwaukee if he forces a trade.
See the reactions to the season-ending injury below.