Milwaukee Bucks' Damian Lillard reveals nightmarish blood clot diagnosis and recovery journey as he returns for playoffs

• Damian Lillard reflects on deep vein thrombosis scare as he returns to the Milwaukee Bucks roster
• Lillard’s fast recovery from a potentially threatening blood clot stunned doctors.
• Head coach Doc Rivers credits Lillard’s mindset for his recovery.

Damian Lillard’s return to the Milwaukee Bucks roster is undoubtedly a sigh of relief for the team as the standout star previously left everyone concerned after his blood clot diagnosis. As Lillard made his return, he shared his horrid experience following the health scare, revealing in a candid admission, Lillard said that the diagnosis left him in a panicking state.

Damian Lillard addressed his recovery from a blood clot diagnosis

Milwaukee Bucks star Damian Lillard is on the verge of returning to the court after a harrowing health scare that shook his world off the court. Lillard, diagnosed with deep vein thrombosis (DVT) in his right calf last month, made his first public comments on April 18, just ahead of the team’s playoff opener against the Indiana Pacers.

Remarkable and historic development to clear from the blood clot in just over 3 weeks. Doctors have told Bucks officials this recovery has never been seen before – but occurred due to early treatment, detection, and specialists working on Lillard even before formal diagnosis. https://t.co/1AOqon1Ahm

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) April 17, 2025

The seven-time All-NBA guard revealed that basketball wasn’t his first concern after the diagnosis. “Obviously that’s a thing that can affect your life," Lillard said. "I’ve got kids. I’ve got a big family. I’m tight with my family. So automatically I start thinking about what it could mean for me personally, so that was the scariest part."

The diagnosis came shortly after Lillard was sidelined on March 20 with what was initially believed to be calf soreness. But the swelling and discomfort didn’t sit right with him. “My leg just felt swollen,” he recalled. “It was like super tight… I was just like ‘This ain’t normal.’ We went from there.”

Medical tests revealed a blood clot, which quickly shifted the focus from basketball to survival. Lillard began blood-thinning medication immediately and did not travel with the team during their next few games. “I mean, just looking at the time that I spent just not playing and the millions of thoughts that went through my head like man, what if this, what if that, I was panicking,” he said. “My back randomly started hurting, my chest started hurting and I’m like man, is it moving? I’m thinking all kind of stuff.”

Doctors monitored Lillard closely with weekly ultrasounds and lab work, which allowed them to track his progress inch-by-inch. The results were surprising even to specialists. “They were just like, 'We don’t see this,'” Lillard said. “Then it just reached a point where it just got a lot smaller out of nowhere.”

By mid-April, he was off medication and cleared for full basketball activity. Head coach Doc Rivers praised Lillard’s mindset during recovery. “He just kept saying, ‘I’m going to get through this.’ The energy of positive thinking, there may be something there.”

As for his first playoff game, Lillard says he’s close. “The moment that I feel I can go, I’m going to go,” he said.

“You never know when something could come up and change your life,” he reflected. “You just can’t take days and opportunities and things in your life for granted.”

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For Bucks, Lillard’s return would be a huge advantage as the superstar would aid dominant Giannis Antetokounmpo in the upcoming games.