Damian Lillard knows that he and the Milwaukee Bucks fell short of expectations last season. But Lillard said there are reasons for that, and that he’s not falling apart physically.
“I’m not a player that’s breaking down,” Lillard said. “I live a clean, good, healthy life, so I can do it. I can do the same (expletive) I did two, three years ago. I can do it right now.”
In addition to working through several injuries, Lillard was going through a lot off the court. That contributed to his efficiency being down.
“There was a lot of change, a lot of stress, you know?” the veteran guard said. “I think now, having an opportunity to get myself in order and kind of start pushing forward to next season.”
Lillard also said that he’s OK that the focus is on the Boston Celtics, Philadelphia 76ers and New York Knicks this season.
“The fact that we’re there and we’re under the radar is perfect because they’re gonna think nothing of us and then they’re gonna be like…You gotta face the truth, eventually. That’s how that usually works,” Lillard said.
Orlando Magic forward Paolo Banchero was confident about his team during a recent appearance on ESPN’s First Take. Banchero said the Magic are ready to compete with the best team in the Eastern Conference.
“We feel like we’re right there,” he said. “We’re right there with all those (elite teams in the East). I remember last year, we started the year off as a top-two, top-three seed and everybody thought it was a fluke. Everybody thought we were going to be a play-in team and drop out the top of the East. We finished strong and got the fifth seed and had a chance to really grab the two seed at the end of the season,” Banchero said. “We were right there last year. We got better this year. I got better; all of us got better. We got some new pieces that are going to help a lot. We’re trying to make some noise. We should easily be a top-four, top-three team, and have a chance to win the East.”
The young Magic star said he feels a responsibility to help Orlando win at the highest levels, since they were the team that drafted him first overall in the 2022 NBA Draft.
“Orlando took a chance on me when they drafted me, and I am forever grateful for that,” said Banchero while appearing on ESPN’s First Take. “I give them my love and respect for that because nobody knew that I was going to go number one. I didn’t know I was going to go number one. So, they put the trust in me to take that chance and take me number one. After that, I felt like it was my job to help them reach heights that haven’t been reached in a long time … We’re trying to take (a huge) jump next year and keep taking it one level at a time. But we don’t want to stop any time soon. We want to keep going and eventually win a championship.”
The Cleveland Cavaliers are signing J.T. Thor to a two-way contract. Thor spent the first three seasons of his career with the Charlotte Hornets.
Thor averaged 3.2 points and 2.3 rebounds in 12.4 minutes per game for the Hornets last season. Thor has appeared in 132 games over the last two seasons for Charlotte.
Thor has become an integral member of South Sudan’s national team. At the 2024 Paris Olympics, the 6-foot-9 forward averaged 6.7 points and 4.7 rebounds for South Sudan.
