After the Milwaukee Bucks stunned the NBA world by waiving Damian Lillard, prominent members of the basketball community believe that Lillard will emerge victorious and win an NBA championship before Giannis Antetokounmpo does again.
Despite spending just two seasons with the Bucks, Lillard was unable to help the team advance past the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs. In both of his seasons with the team, the Bucks lost in the first round to Tyrese Haliburton and the Indiana Pacers.
As a result, the Bucks decided to move on from Lillard and “forced” him to enter free agency by waiving him. While fans remain conflicted on this issue and this move by the Bucks, an ESPN analyst believes that all of this will help Lillard in the long run.
Are Championship Contenders Looking To Acquire Damian Lillard?
Upon hearing that Lillard has been waived, every team across the league, especially those without a star point guard, will consider adding Lillard to their roster to improve their chances of winning an NBA championship.
Although Lillard will soon turn 35 and should be approaching the backend of his career, he still has a lot left to contribute, especially on the offensive end of the floor. Be that as it may, senior NBA writer David Dennis Jr. caught the NBA world off guard by claiming that Lillard has a better chance of winning a championship when compared to Antetokounmpo.
“This is a league-changing thing that’s hovering over everybody right now. This is Thanos coming. This is winter is coming. Because Dame Lillard is going to add his talents to a contender. He’s not going to go out there and rebuild.
“He is going to be an addendum to a team that is already going to be in the championship spotlight, right? And he’s also going to be able to do that without having to gamble. He’s going to look and see who’s best positioned to win a championship…”
.@DavidDTSS believes Damian Lillard is in a better position than Giannis to win a championship 👀
“This is Thanos coming. … Dame Lillard is going to add his talents to a contender.” pic.twitter.com/N9UkpS7d4d
— First Take (@FirstTake) July 2, 2025
Dennis Jr. confidently predicted, “This is going to change so many franchises…He can literally go to anybody for one dollar and turn them from a team that is in the conference championship or the second round, and they can win a championship with Dame Lillard. Out of everybody involved in this whole thing, Milwaukee, Giannis, Myles Turner, Indiana, Dame Lillard, out of all of this is the person most positioned to win a championship.”
While Dennis Jr. passionately advocated for Lillard, fans did not completely agree with him on this subject. After all, given his health status and current career stage, it is impossible to know if any of the teams he mentioned, such as the Lakers and Nuggets, want to bring Lillard on.
In any case, Lillard will no longer be with the Bucks and can take his talents to another team to potentially try to win an NBA championship. Antetokounmpo already won a title with the Bucks back in 2021. Therefore, comparing the two of them and presuming that the pressure they face is the same can be considered illogical.
Lillard has yet to make an NBA Finals appearance throughout his 13-year career. Fans are left wondering if any team that decides to take the risk and bring him on will be able to get past the Conference Finals and help him finally win a title.
