Damian Lillard recently confirmed what every Portland Trail Blazers fan already expected: a return in the 2025-26 season is unlikely.
The Blazers guard recently appeared on IShowSpeed's YouTube channel, which made a stop to visit Lillard in Portland. Lillard addressed his rehab progress, saying that he will "probably" be back at the start of next season.
"I just gotta get all the way right," Lillard added.
Damian Lillard targets a return in 2026-27
It makes perfect sense for Lillard to target the opening night of the 2026-27 season as a realistic return date. Achilles tears are brutal injuries that aren't something to rush back from in general. But it's even more logical for Lillard and the Blazers to stress patience given multiple factors, including the timing of the injury, Portland's rebuilding timeline, and most significantly, how late Lillard is in his career.
Lillard is now 35 years old, around the same age Kobe Bryant was when he suffered the same injury. Bryant recovered, but never fully returned to form. His scoring and efficiency took a significant dip, hovering around 20 points per game while shooting under 40% from the field and 30% from beyond the arc.
There are countless other examples of players never coming back the same following this devastating injury. That dip is reasonable to anticipate from Lillard as well. However, Lillard has consistently defied all odds throughout his basketball career to get to where he is as arguably the best Blazer ever to play. It'd be foolish to completely count out a full recovery, especially when Lillard himself has expressed confidence in that being the case.
That expectation also plays a factor in Lillard's patient approach. When he's back, he wants to be fully back.
"I'm going to take my time to get all the way back, get it fully healed, get it strong, and feel confident on it," Lillard said on The Sideline with Andy Katz. "I want to get my body all the way back in shape, so that when I return to the floor, I'm not coming back as a shell of myself. I plan to return and be myself."
Lillard, who Chauncey Billups referred to as the "highest-paid assistant coach in history," will undoubtedly play a valuable role as a mentor this season. With Portland's young core developing and Lillard's patient recovery, a postseason return in 2026-27 doesn't seem out of the picture, especially if Dame returns close to the player he expects to be.