Damian Lillard Returns and Gives the Bucks a Huge Win with a Beastly Shot

Damian Lillard has made a triumphant return to the court with a masterful performance following his absence due to a concussion.

Lillard returned to action after missing three games and scored a game-winning layup with 3.9 seconds left in the Milwaukee Bucks' 101-100 victory over the Houston Rockets, ending the Texan team's five-game winning streak.

"It was the first time in my life I've had a concussion," Lillard said after the game. "I've played football, regularly box, been in situations where I might have expected to have a concussion before, but this was the first time. Usually when something's wrong with me, I feel like I can overcome it with will, and I'm fine. This was one of the first times in my life, definitely in my NBA career, where I felt like something wasn't right. It was frustrating because I had no choice but to follow the process. I just had to acknowledge how I felt and knew I wasn't at 100%."

In his comeback, Lillard had an uneven performance. He tallied 18 points and 10 assists but missed all six of his three-point attempts and failed to convert on some contested layups he normally makes. However, when the game was on the line, Lillard delivered, as he has so many times in his career.

"I think he's one of the best ever at closing games," stated Giannis Antetokounmpo, Bucks' star player. Doc Rivers, the coach, compared him to one of the greatest shooters of all time: "Dame has great courage. He reminds me a lot of Ray Allen in that sense. Ray didn't have many off shooting nights, but when he did, if there was a shot to win, you wanted him to take it. And that's Dame. It doesn't matter if he's hot or not, he has that belief in himself that he should take and make the final shot. And he does it time and time again."

Lillard's Moment

The Bucks were trailing 100-99 when Lillard took the ball in the final seconds. He drove into the paint, eluded two defenders, and made a layup that put Milwaukee ahead for good. "I felt like it was one of those games where I needed to keep pushing forward, keep the foot on the gas in the final moments," Lillard commented. "It all came down to those last two plays. I made a basket, and we were able to stop them on the other end."

This was the moment Lillard had longed to deliver after a challenging week trying to return to the court. "I tried to expedite my way through the protocols to get back as soon as possible," he explained. "I think that ended up working against me. I did 30 minutes on the bike, 30 minutes on the treadmill, and 30 minutes on the court all in one day just to see how I felt. I realized I wasn't right. From there, I started doing 45-minute workouts on the court, at a fast pace, with fewer breaks, trying to make up for the time off."

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Damian Lillard vuelve y le da la victoria a los Bucks con un canastón bestial