UPDATE: Lillard has been cleared of his deep vein thrombosis and is no longer on blood-thinning medication, per ESPN’s Shams Charania. Charania also reported that Lillard is out for Saturday’s Game 1 vs. the Pacers and “he will have a period of time to resume contact workouts and ramp up for return.”
While Lillard is no longer dealing with the blood clot issue, his return to the Bucks is still unclear. Milwaukee’s chances against Indiana aren’t great without Lillard, but it’s uncertain when or if he will return during the series. With Lillard’s return unknown, the Bucks are a +145 underdog to win this first rounds series vs. the Pacers on DraftKings Sportsbook.
Damian Lillard has not appeared in a basketball game since all the way back on March 18 due to complications with a blood clot. While we had not received a definitive update on his condition in some time, there had been hope that Lillard would return to the Bucks at some point in the postseason. According to ESPN’s Shams Charania, though that optimism remains, Lillard will not be able to take the court for the start of Milwaukee’s first-round series against the Pacers.
Lillard missed the final 14 contests of the regular season. In that span of time, Kevin Porter Jr. was asked to step-up the most of any Bucks’ asset, despite still regularly coming into games in a reserve role. From March 19 on, Porter’s 24.0% usage rate ranked second of the team to only Giannis Antetokounmpo (33.9%). Kyle Kuzma came in just behind his teammate at 23.0%.
Milwaukee is currently a +160 underdog to win their opening series against Indiana on the DraftKings Sportsbook. The Bucks are also +11000 to win the NBA Championship — odds that feel incredibly long for an organization that employs the aforementioned Antetokounmpo. Still, if Milwaukee can survive the Pacers, its standing as a five-seed in the East means it’ll avoid the Celtics until a possible Conference Final. The longer the Bucks make it, the more of a chance it gives Lillard to return. The team might be worth some long shot consideration for bettors in a unique circumstance.
