It appears Damien Lillard could soon return to the court for the Bucks.
Lillard, 34, was exempt from his deep venous thrombosis on Thursday and is no longer taking blood thinning medication, ESPN’s Shamcharania.
The timeline for Lillard’s Return has not yet been revealed by the Bucks. The Star Point Guard has been ruled out in Game 1 of Milwaukee’s playoff series against the Pacers.
With a positive step, he returned to practice on Thursday.
“We’re excited about Dame,” Bucks general manager Jon Horst said in a statement. “Our priority has always been Dame’s health. We are grateful to the medical team for diagnosing and treating DVT early on, as well as the world-renowned hematology experts at Mayo Clinic.
“Every stages of Dame’s recovery were in the direction of world-class medical professionals and certain strict protocols that allowed Dame to play safely and healthy.”
Before his final match on March 18th, Lillard averaged 24.9 points and 7.1 assists this season, earning his ninth trip to the All-Star Game.
The following week, the Bucks announced that Lillard had a deep venous thrombosis in his right calf and was taking medication that thins the blood.
Despite continuing to be optimistic about Lillard’s potential return, Milwaukee head coach Dock Rivers admitted that the team is ready for seven All-NBA players to help miss the rest of the season.
“This could have been a career threat,” Rivers said Thursday. “Or it was. The fact that he is very likely to play in the playoffs for us, that’s a godsend.”
According to ESPN, doctors told Bucks officials he never saw a recovery as fast as Lillard.
Lillard was diagnosed with deep vein thrombosis just weeks after Spurs Center’s Victor Wenbagnama was declared for the rest of the season and the same problem affected his right shoulder.
