The announcement that the Milwaukee Bucks got earlier on Tuesday was borderline miraculous. After being diagnosed with deep vein thrombosis not even a month ago, it seemed implausible that Damian Lillard could return before the end of the season. And yet, here we are, with Lillard suiting up for Game 2 against the Indiana Pacers.
There's no question that this entire development has been a medical wonder, and everyone, not even just Bucks fans, should be thrilled to see him overcome something that had the potential to end so badly. At the same time, Lillard returning may not be what fans in Milwaukee think it is.
Some certainly had the hope that by Dame playing once again, it would give the Bucks a real edge in this intense first-round matchup with the Pacers. But what we are seeing so far is that Lillard is unlikely to be the series-shifter Milwaukee needs him to be.
After eight minutes of play in the first quarter that Dame started, the Pacers led by five, 31-26, and it was not a strong showing from number zero. Lillard had just two points at the time and was a minus 15 in plus/minus. By the end of the contest, he finished with 11 points on 3-for-10 shooting.
It appears unlikely Lillard is the fix Milwaukee needs against Indiana
Sure, Dame is probably a little rusty after coming off his injury. But the concept of Lillard being some massive game-changer against this Pacers squad was always a bit iffy. Indiana unfortunately has the personnel to effectively combat Dame's skillset and make life difficult for him with versatile defenders.
It was not likely to be a Lillard series from the start, even if he had come into the tilt fully healthy. In fact, some suspected that had Dame sat out the series, perhaps the Bucks could have had more of a shot with the offense running almost exclusively through Giannis Antetokounmpo instead.
But now that we have any kind of sample size in front of us as well, things are clearly not looking favorable for Milwaukee. It's a bit hard to say that Lillard is operating at a high capacity right now, and his services are not going to get the Bucks over the hump. Where does that leave us, potentially? With a potential third straight first-round exit for this team.
This is not quite the scenario Dame pictured when he arrived in Milwaukee a year and a half ago, I'm sure. Should this series play out the way it's gone so far, there are likely to be some uncomfortable conversations regarding the roster coming this summer.