“You Can’t Pretend For 11 Years”: Damian Lillard, 24 Hours After News Of His Divorce, Claims He Never Tried To Build Up A Specific Image Of Himself

During a recent appearance on SiriusXM NBA Radio, Damian Lillard was asked to speak about the backlash he received over the summer ever since he asked for a trade. For someone who did display his loyalty for 11 years, there has been a sudden change in how Dame is being portrayed now. Earlier this off-season, the star guard defended his honor after an internet troll criticized his decision to part ways with the Portland Trail Blazers. Now that Lillard has been shipped off to the Milwaukee Bucks, he gave a well-thought-out answer regarding his image.

Damian Lillard’s move to the Milwaukee Bucks isn’t the only change that he’s gone through this 2023 summer. Yesterday, merely a few days after the news of his blockbuster trade, reports revealed that Lillard also filed for a divorce. The 6ft 2” sharpshooter shares three children with Kay’La Hanson – Dame Jr, and twins, Kali Emma Lee and Kalii Laheem. Splitting up with the Blazers after 11 long years and divorcing his wife of two years, Lillard seems to fixing for a new start at the moment.

Damian Lillard talks about his image

In an appearance on SiriusXM NBA Radio, the host asked Dame to speak about the change of his image in other’s perceptions. Giving a very elaborate response, the seven-time All-Star began by stating that every player receives some or the other kind of backlash at a point during their career. Also finally disclosing that Miami was his preferred destination, the superstar disclosed that he could accept not being loved all the time.

“Everybody has their time where you gon’ get some backlash, you gon’ get some slander. Whether that be, cause you did something negative or you did something that people don’t agree with. Nobody is gonna be loved all the time and I can accept that cause I’m strong… I think, you can’t pretend for 11 years, that’s hard to do… It is what it is. I don’t think it was a secret that Miami was where I wanted to go when I asked for a trade.”

The newest member of the Bucks also spoke about not trying to have an image. Implying that he never pretended to be someone he was not, the 33-year-old also claimed that he didn’t care much for the opinions of the people he didn’t know.

“I think that the beauty of my image is that I’ve never tried to have an image. What you see is what you get. You can go back to anything I ever said or anything I ever did. Whether it was on camera or off camera… I was looking at a lot of people reporting and a lot of people saying things that I literally don’t know. So they don’t know me… because they don’t know me at all, they just assume that this is another case of somebody is disgruntle, they doing this behind closed doors, they saying this to this person.”

Despite the Heat being his priority all off-season long, Dame has spoken about his love for Milwaukee as a city as well as a basketball franchise. From what his interviews suggest, the point guard is excited to take on the floor alongside his new teammates.

Dame believes that it will be difficult to stop him and Antetokounmpo

The newest All-Star duo of Damian Lillard and Giannis Antetokounmpo are already seeming like a formidable pair. According to several analysts and enthusiasts, the Antetokounmpo-Lillard duo have the potential to witness the same level of achievement as the likes of Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant.

During the Bucks’ Media Day, the 2013 Rookie of the Year spoke about the difficulties that the teams would face while trying to defend him and the Greek Freak.

“They’re not gonna allow this dude to come downhill and just dunk every time. Those guys ate off that a lot. There’s two on the ball and you’re popping open threes and I’m a sniper.  Which one are you gonna do? Are you gonna clog up the paint or are you gonna allow me to make 9 3s?”