- Damian Lillard is finalising a 3-year, $42m deal to return to Portland
- The contract includes a no-trade clause and $70m salary for 2025-26
- Lillard will miss much of the season due to a torn Achilles
Key Takeaways:
Nine-time NBA All-Star Damian Lillard will return to Portland. The guard is close to finalising a 3-year deal with the team worth $42 million.
BREAKING: Nine-time NBA All-Star Damian Lillard is finalizing a three-year, $42 million contract to return to the Portland Trail Blazers, sources tell ESPN. Deal is expected to include a player option in 2027-28 and a no-trade clause. A storybook reunion home for the 35-year-old. pic.twitter.com/mm1uUtMgO6
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 17, 2025
The deal will include a player option for the 2027–28 season, along with a no-trade clause. At present, only LeBron James has a similar clause with the LA Lakers, after Bradley Beal gave his up when moving to the LA Clippers. For the 2025–26 campaign, Lillard will receive a salary of $70 million, split between Portland and Milwaukee, who opted to buy out his contract.
In total, Lillard is set to earn $141 million over the next two seasons.
One of the league’s best long-range shooters is expected to miss a large part of the upcoming NBA season. He is recovering from a torn Achilles tendon in his left leg.
Lillard returns to the Trail Blazers, who drafted him as the 6th overall pick in the 2012 NBA Draft. He spent 11 years in Portland before being traded to Milwaukee in 2023. The return also carries personal importance for Lillard, as his family and children live in the city.
Lillard currently ranks fourth on the all-time list for most three-pointers made, with 2,804. He trails only Stephen Curry, James Harden, and Ray Allen.
Other players to have surpassed 2,500 made threes include Klay Thompson, Reggie Miller, and LeBron James.