Portland took Lillard out of Weber State with the sixth pick of the 2012 draft. He started all 82 games as a rookie, averaged 19.0 points and was named Rookie of the Year.

Over the next decade he became the best scorer the Trail Blazers have had, with seven seasons above 25 points a game in Portland and two at 30 or more.

Points per game, season by season

After asking for a move in the summer of 2023, Lillard was sent to Milwaukee in a three-team trade on Sept. 27, 2023. Portland received Jrue Holiday and a 2029 first-round pick; Holiday was flipped to Boston within days, and returned to Portland in a trade for Anfernee Simons in the summer of 2025.

Lillard averaged 24.3 points in 73 games in his first Bucks season and 24.9 in his second, when he made his ninth All-Star team but played only 58 games because of deep vein thrombosis in his right calf.

1. Sept. 27, 2023Traded to the Bucks; Holiday and a 2029 first go to Portland.
2. March 18, 2025His last regular-season game before the blood clot sidelines him.
3. April 27, 2025In his third game back, Game 4 against Indiana, he tears his left Achilles tendon midway through the first quarter.
4. July 2025Milwaukee waives him and stretches the $113 million left on his contract over five years.
5. July 19, 2025Portland announces a three-year deal, about $42 million with a no-trade clause and an opt-out after two seasons.

Lillard spent all of 2025-26 rehabbing in Portland. He thought about trying to come back during the 2026 playoffs and decided against it.

The roster around him changed too. Portland added Ja Morant, kept Holiday and Scoot Henderson, and new coach Micah Nori planned to play 10 deep. Lillard said he would play fewer minutes but would not sit out back-to-backs.

On Oct. 21 Portland opened against Phoenix with a 21-0 run, led 43-12 after one quarter and won 124-83. Lillard had 12 points and four 3-pointers in the first quarter, sat the whole fourth and still led the game in scoring.

Portland's lead at the end of each quarter vs Phoenix

Two nights later in Sacramento, Lillard played 33 minutes. His shot was colder, 7-of-18 and 2-of-10 from three, but Portland scored 44 points in the third quarter and won 128-120 to start 2-0.

Lillard's first two games

The two games moved Lillard to 22,642 career regular-season points and 2,812 3-pointers, fifth on the all-time list. In Portland colors he is now at 19,420 points.