Damian Lillard Bio
Damian Lamonte Ollie Lillard Sr. is an American professional basketball player who currently plays point guard for the Portland Trail Blazers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed “Dame Time” for his late-game scoring heroics, Lillard has built a reputation as one of the most clutch performers of his generation. He is a nine-time NBA All-Star and the franchise’s all-time leading scorer, and he has also built a parallel career as a hip-hop recording artist under the stage name Dame D.O.L.L.A. Beyond playing, Lillard serves as the general manager of the Weber State Wildcats men’s basketball program.
Born on July 15, 1990, in Oakland, California, Lillard played college basketball at Weber State University, where he became one of the most decorated players in Big Sky Conference history. Selected sixth overall by the Trail Blazers in the 2012 NBA Draft, he immediately lived up to his billing by winning the NBA Rookie of the Year award and later earned All-NBA recognition multiple times. He has also represented the United States in international competition, winning a gold medal at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.
Early Life and Background
Damian Lillard was born and raised in Oakland, California, a city known for producing tough, competitive basketball talent. He grew up in a challenging neighborhood, an environment he has frequently cited as a major influence on his drive and toughness. Lillard wore the jersey number 0 to represent his journey: from Oakland, to Ogden, and then Oregon, the three stops that have defined his basketball life.
As a young player, Lillard moved between several high schools before settling in. He began his high school career at Arroyo High School in San Lorenzo, California, where he cracked the varsity lineup as a 5-foot-5 freshman. After a coaching change, he transferred to St. Joseph Notre Dame High School in Alameda, California, the same private school that produced Hall of Fame point guard Jason Kidd. Limited playing time there prompted another move, and he finished his prep career at Oakland High School under coach Orlando Watkins, earning First Team All-League recognition as a junior and senior.
Despite averaging more than 22 points as a senior at Oakland, Lillard was regarded as only a two-star recruit by major scouting services. Several mid-major programs showed interest, but Weber State was the first college to send a head coach to watch him in person. Head coach Randy Rahe traveled to Texas during Lillard’s junior year, an effort that Lillard has said played a decisive role in his college choice. Lillard also received scholarship offers from Wichita State, Saint Mary’s, and San Diego State, but he selected Weber State in part to escape the difficult environment around his Oakland neighborhood.
Path to Basketball
At Weber State, Lillard quickly emerged as a program cornerstone. As a freshman, he averaged 11.5 points per game and was named the Big Sky Conference Freshman of the Year and a first-team All-Big Sky selection. He raised his scoring average to 19.9 points as a sophomore and led the Wildcats to the conference championship, earning Big Sky Player of the Year honors. A foot injury limited him during his junior campaign, forcing him to take a medical redshirt.
Healthy again as a redshirt junior, Lillard averaged 24.5 points per game and led the nation in scoring for much of the season, finishing second nationally in scoring behind Oakland’s Reggie Hamilton. He set a college career high with 41 points against San Jose State on December 3, 2011, and at season’s end he earned third-team All-American honors, a second Big Sky Player of the Year award, and a third first-team all-conference selection. He finished his college career ranked as the No. 2 scorer in Weber State history with 1,934 points and the No. 5 scorer in Big Sky history.
Entering the 2012 NBA Draft as the consensus top point guard prospect in the country, Lillard was selected sixth overall by the Portland Trail Blazers. He became the first Weber State player ever taken in the first round, and he has since had his No. 1 jersey retired by the program. He completed his degree in professional sales at Weber State in May 2015.
Damian Lillard Career
Early Career (2012–2014)
Lillard’s NBA debut came on October 31, 2012, against the Los Angeles Lakers, a game in which he posted 23 points and 11 assists to join Oscar Robertson and Allen Iverson as the only players in league history with at least 20 points and 10 assists in their first NBA game. He went on to start all 82 games and led all rookies in scoring (19.0 points per game), assists (6.5), field goals, and free throws. Lillard also became the first Trail Blazer to win an event at NBA All-Star Weekend, capturing the Skills Challenge.
His rookie averages of 19.0 points, 3.1 rebounds, 6.5 assists, and 0.90 steals made him a unanimous NBA Rookie of the Year, joining Blake Griffin, David Robinson, and Ralph Sampson in that rare club. He also set the NBA rookie record for three-pointers in a season with 185, surpassing Stephen Curry’s previous mark. The following season, Lillard helped Portland to a 54–28 record and a first-round playoff matchup against Houston. In Game 6, his buzzer-beating three-pointer gave Portland a 99–98 victory and the franchise’s first playoff series win since 2000.
Portland Trail Blazers Breakthrough (2014–2023)
Lillard’s third season in 2014–15 produced career highs in points, rebounds, steals, and field goal percentage, and he signed a five-year, $120 million contract extension in July 2015. By the end of 2015–16, he had set franchise records for three-pointers and was averaging 25.1 points per game, forming with C. J. McCollum the first backcourt in team history to both average at least 20 points. On February 19, 2016, Lillard exploded for a career-high 51 points against the eventual 73-win Golden State Warriors, becoming the first player since steals became an official statistic in 1973–74 to post at least 50 points, seven assists, and six steals in a single game.
In 2016–17, Lillard put together a franchise-record 59-point outing against Utah and finished the year as the recipient of the Magic Johnson Award, which recognizes on-court excellence combined with cooperation and dignity in dealing with the media. By the 2017–18 season, he had become the fastest player in franchise history to reach 10,000 career points and was named to the All-NBA First Team, joining Clyde Drexler and Bill Walton as the only Blazers ever to earn that distinction.
Lillard’s most iconic moment came on April 23, 2019, when he hit a 37-foot, series-ending three-pointer at the buzzer to finish with a playoff career-high 50 points and eliminate the Oklahoma City Thunder in five games. He followed that with a run to the Western Conference Finals, Portland’s first appearance there since 2000. Following the season, he signed a four-year, $196 million supermax extension. In the 2019–20 bubble, he averaged an NBA-best 37.6 points across eight seeding games and was named NBA Player of the Seeding Games, punctuating the stretch with a third 60-point outing of the season against Dallas.
Milwaukee Bucks Era (2023–2025)
On September 27, 2023, Lillard was traded to the Milwaukee Bucks as part of a three-team deal. He opened his Bucks career with 39 points in his debut against Philadelphia, a franchise record for a debut. By December 19, 2023, he had scored his 20,000th career point, becoming just the fourth player in league history with totals of at least 20,000 points, 5,000 assists, and 2,000 three-pointers, alongside LeBron James, Stephen Curry, and James Harden. On March 8, 2024, he passed Reggie Miller for fourth on the NBA’s all-time three-point list.
Lillard was selected as an Eastern Conference starter for the 2024 NBA All-Star Game, his first time starting and his eighth overall selection. At All-Star Weekend, he became the first player in more than a decade to win back-to-back Three-Point Contests, and he was named the All-Star Game MVP after pouring in 39 points with 11 three-pointers, the first player ever to capture both the Three-Point Contest and the All-Star Game MVP in the same weekend. He also helped Milwaukee win the 2024 NBA Cup with a 97–81 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder, earning a place on the All-Tournament team.
In March 2025, Lillard was diagnosed with deep vein thrombosis in his right calf and ruled out indefinitely, but he was cleared in time to return for the 2025 playoffs. In Game 4 of the first-round series against Indiana, he tore his left Achilles tendon, ending his season. On July 6, 2025, the Bucks waived him and stretched the remaining money on his contract.
Return to Portland (2025–Present)
On July 19, 2025, the Trail Blazers signed Lillard to a three-year, $42 million deal, marking his return to the franchise where he had spent his first 11 NBA seasons. The move was widely viewed as a homecoming, allowing Lillard to continue his career with the organization that drafted him. In February 2026, despite not having played in an NBA game all season, Lillard won his third career Three-Point Contest at NBA All-Star Weekend, tying Larry Bird and Craig Hodges for the most titles in event history.
With Lillard unlikely to play during the 2025–26 NBA season while recovering from his torn Achilles, he was introduced on August 2, 2025, as the new general manager of the Weber State Wildcats men’s basketball program, his alma mater. The executive role allows him to remain in the game while continuing his rehabilitation. As he works his way back, the Trail Blazers and their fan base are watching to see how soon “Dame Time” can return to the floor in Portland.
Driving Style and Strengths
Lillard is widely regarded as one of the most dangerous long-range shooters in NBA history, with a deep, quick release that makes him a threat from well beyond the arc. He combines that shooting with elite ball-handling, creative passing, and a fearless approach to big moments, traits that have produced a long list of game-winning shots. His pick-and-roll mastery, paired with his ability to operate off the ball as a movement shooter, has allowed him to thrive in a variety of offensive systems throughout his career.
Notable Events and Milestones
Some of Lillard’s signature moments include the 37-foot series-winning three-pointer against Oklahoma City in 2019, a 71-point outburst against Houston in February 2023 that set a Trail Blazers single-game record, and back-to-back Three-Point Contest titles in 2023 and 2024. He is the Trail Blazers’ all-time leading scorer, ranks among the top five in NBA history in three-pointers made, and is one of the few players to log multiple 60-point games in a single season.
Damian Lillard Career Wins
While Lillard’s career is best measured in All-Star selections, All-NBA honors, and clutch playoff moments rather than championship rings, he has collected a wide range of team and individual achievements. His honors include nine NBA All-Star selections, the 2024 All-Star Game MVP, the 2013 NBA Rookie of the Year, All-NBA First Team recognition in 2018, and a place on the NBA 75th Anniversary Team. In 2024, he added the NBA Cup championship with Milwaukee to a resume that also includes a gold medal from the 2020 Tokyo Olympics with the United States.
NBA All-Star Highlights
Lillard has been selected to nine NBA All-Star Games, earning the honor in 2014, 2015, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2023, 2024, and 2025. He won the Skills Challenge as a rookie in 2013, captured Three-Point Contest titles in 2023, 2024, and 2026, and was named the 2024 All-Star Game MVP. He is the only player in NBA history to win both the All-Star Game MVP and the Three-Point Contest in the same All-Star Weekend.
Other Wins and Performances
At Weber State, Lillard was a two-time Big Sky Player of the Year (2010, 2012), a three-time first-team All-Big Sky selection, and the Big Sky Freshman of the Year. He earned third-team All-American honors as a junior in 2012 and was the runner-up for the Bob Cousy Award, given to the nation’s top point guard. Internationally, he helped the United States win gold at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, and his No. 1 jersey has been retired by Weber State.
Damian Lillard Family
Family Background and Personal Life
Lillard has spoken often about the central role his family has played in his journey, including his siblings, LaNae and Houston, and his cousin Eugene “Baby” Vasquez, who introduced him to hip-hop during long car rides in Oakland. Another cousin, Brookfield Duece, has been an active rap artist in the Oakland scene and is part of Lillard’s Front Page Music label. In the 2020–21 season, Lillard briefly shared an NBA locker room with another cousin, Keljin Blevins, who was a teammate in Portland.
Personal Life
On March 29, 2018, Lillard welcomed his first child, a son named Damian Jr. In January 2021, his fiancée Kay’La Hanson gave birth to twins, a daughter named Kali and a son named Kalii. Lillard and Hanson married in September 2021, and the family has lived in West Linn, Oregon, an affluent suburb of Portland. By 2024, Lillard and Hanson were divorced. He is a Christian and has a tattoo of Psalms 37:1–3 on his left arm. Off the court, Lillard has launched a RESPECT Program to help local high school students graduate, revived Oakland’s Never Worry Picnic community event, and co-owns Damian Lillard Toyota in McMinnville, Oregon.
2025 Season Performance
Lillard’s 2024–25 season with the Milwaukee Bucks was defined by individual milestones interrupted by serious health setbacks. He opened the year strong, posting 41 points with nine assists in a November loss to Cleveland, and was later selected as a reserve for the 2025 NBA All-Star Game, his ninth career selection. On December 17, 2024, he helped the Bucks win the NBA Cup with a 97–81 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder, earning a spot on the All-Tournament team in the process.
His season then took a difficult turn. On March 25, 2025, Lillard was ruled out indefinitely with deep vein thrombosis in his right calf, raising significant concerns about his availability. He was cleared shortly before the 2025 playoffs and returned in Game 2 of the first-round series against Indiana, scoring 14 points in a loss. In Game 4, he tore his left Achilles tendon on a non-contact play, ending his season and casting doubt over his 2025–26 availability. The Bucks were eliminated in five games.
Looking ahead, the biggest storyline is Lillard’s return to Portland on a three-year, $42 million deal, signed July 19, 2025, which marked a full-circle homecoming to the only franchise that had originally drafted him. While he is expected to miss much or all of the 2025–26 season as he recovers from the torn Achilles, his introduction as general manager of the Weber State Wildcats men’s basketball program ensures he remains closely tied to the game. With his third Three-Point Contest title already in hand, the next chapter of “Dame Time” is firmly rooted back in Oregon.
