- Joined
- May 8, 2002
- Posts
- 439,514
- Reaction score
- 44
Milwaukee Bucks fans tuning into the final games of the regular season ahead of the NBA playoffs will continue to see Damian Lillard in street clothes.
He remains sidelined with a serious health condition.
While the Bucks' 11-time All-Star guard has been a presence around the team, he has been out indefinitely with blood clots in his right calf and will miss his 12th straight game Thursday night against the New Orleans Pelicans.
What is Lillard's status for the playoffs? Could he return to the team?
Here's the latest on Lillard and his condition:
Lillard was diagnosed with deep vein thrombosis in his right calf last month. It's a condition that is requiring blood thinners.
According to the Mayo Clinic, DVT occurs when a blood clot forms in one or more of the deep veins in the body, usually in the legs. It can cause leg pain or swelling.
The last time Lillard played was March 18 against the Golden State Warriors, the first of a five-game West Coast road trip. His condition was revealed a week later.
Lillard has been visible at Bucks home games since then, but he didn't travel on the recent three-game road trip.
“We decided against it – he had a great report the other day,” Bucks head coach Doc Rivers told the Journal Sentinel. “The numbers are phenomenal and, ‘why mess with it?’ was our thing. Why flying or anything could affect that. We have much more hope today than we did three days ago, I can tell you that. And so, we’re going to take everything that we can do to see if there is a way we can get him back.”
Rivers sounded optimistic about Lillard again last week, though acknowledged that blood-thinning treatment typically takes several months. The Cleveland Clinic, however, notes treatment is dependent on each individual and situation.
"(The timeline) definitely has changed, medically," Rivers said when the Bucks were playing the Miami Heat on Saturday, April 5. "Which is good. The location of it is very important as well. And it is, it's lower. But, it still could be six months. We just don't know."
Lillard is out indefinitely, meaning the Bucks have not given a date on his return. However, the team hasn't ruled Lillard out for the season.
Conversely, when a blood clot was found in the shoulder of San Antonio Spurs' second-year star Victor Wembanyama in February he was shut down for the rest of the season.
Lillard's status for the playoffs is unclear. The playoffs begin for the Bucks on April 19 or April 20.
If Lillard misses the playoffs, it will be the second straight year he will miss games in the postseason due to his health. Last year, he missed two of the team's six first-round games in the series loss to the Indiana Pacers while battling an Achilles injury.
He averaged 31.3 points in the four games he played.
Here are Damian Lillard's stats this season. His 24.9 points per game are 10th highest in the NBA and his 92.1% free-throwing shooting is second-best:
Jim Owczarski of the Journal Sentinel contributed to this report.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: When will Damian Lillard to the Bucks? Injury, return, stats, playoffs
Continue reading...
He remains sidelined with a serious health condition.
While the Bucks' 11-time All-Star guard has been a presence around the team, he has been out indefinitely with blood clots in his right calf and will miss his 12th straight game Thursday night against the New Orleans Pelicans.
What is Lillard's status for the playoffs? Could he return to the team?
Here's the latest on Lillard and his condition:
What happened to Damian Lillard?
Lillard was diagnosed with deep vein thrombosis in his right calf last month. It's a condition that is requiring blood thinners.
According to the Mayo Clinic, DVT occurs when a blood clot forms in one or more of the deep veins in the body, usually in the legs. It can cause leg pain or swelling.
You must be registered for see images
Damian Lillard injury
The last time Lillard played was March 18 against the Golden State Warriors, the first of a five-game West Coast road trip. His condition was revealed a week later.
Lillard has been visible at Bucks home games since then, but he didn't travel on the recent three-game road trip.
“We decided against it – he had a great report the other day,” Bucks head coach Doc Rivers told the Journal Sentinel. “The numbers are phenomenal and, ‘why mess with it?’ was our thing. Why flying or anything could affect that. We have much more hope today than we did three days ago, I can tell you that. And so, we’re going to take everything that we can do to see if there is a way we can get him back.”
Rivers sounded optimistic about Lillard again last week, though acknowledged that blood-thinning treatment typically takes several months. The Cleveland Clinic, however, notes treatment is dependent on each individual and situation.
"(The timeline) definitely has changed, medically," Rivers said when the Bucks were playing the Miami Heat on Saturday, April 5. "Which is good. The location of it is very important as well. And it is, it's lower. But, it still could be six months. We just don't know."
When will Damian Lillard return?
Lillard is out indefinitely, meaning the Bucks have not given a date on his return. However, the team hasn't ruled Lillard out for the season.
Conversely, when a blood clot was found in the shoulder of San Antonio Spurs' second-year star Victor Wembanyama in February he was shut down for the rest of the season.
Damian Lillard playoffs
Lillard's status for the playoffs is unclear. The playoffs begin for the Bucks on April 19 or April 20.
If Lillard misses the playoffs, it will be the second straight year he will miss games in the postseason due to his health. Last year, he missed two of the team's six first-round games in the series loss to the Indiana Pacers while battling an Achilles injury.
He averaged 31.3 points in the four games he played.
Damian Lillard stats
Here are Damian Lillard's stats this season. His 24.9 points per game are 10th highest in the NBA and his 92.1% free-throwing shooting is second-best:
- Games: 58
- Minutes: 36.1
- Points: 24.9
- FG%: 44.8%
- 3P%: 37.6%
- FT%: 92.1%
- Rebounds: 4.7
- Assists: 7.1
- Steals: 1.2
Jim Owczarski of the Journal Sentinel contributed to this report.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: When will Damian Lillard to the Bucks? Injury, return, stats, playoffs
Continue reading...
