The Milwaukee Bucks' stunning decision on the contract of injured nine-time All-Star point guard Damian Lillard has made league history.
According to Eric Nehm, Sam Amick and Joe Vardon of The Athletic, the seven-time All-NBA pro saw the final two seasons and $113 million owed to him on his current deal stretched and waived by the Bucks. He will now make $22.5 million across the next five years not to play for Milwaukee.
"That amount is not only unprecedented as the largest contract ever to be 'stretched,' but it is also nearly three times larger than the previous leader (the Knicks waived and stretched Joakim Noah when he had $37.8 million remaining on his deal in 2018). Historically speaking, gambles don’t get any bigger than this."
Lillard is effectively a free agent, although he's likely to miss all of the 2025-26 season as he recovers from an Achilles tendon tear. Nehm, Amick and Vardon indicate that Lillard is receiving overtures from the Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics about rehabbing with them this year.
The 6-foot-2 Weber State product, already a member of the NBA's 75th Anniversary Team, was still quite valuable to Milwaukee when he did suit up.
Across 58 healthy bouts last season, Lillard averaged 24.9 points on .448/.376/.921 shooting splits, 7.1 assists and 4.7 boards per bout.
The Bucks are taking quite the gamble with his dead money now set to be on their books for the next five seasons.
It's clearly a desperation play to convince two-time league MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo that Milwaukee is willing to shake things up for roster improvements, but is adding Turner and bringing back virtually all of the club's middling vets enough to vault the Bucks into title contention, even in an injury-depleted East? Probably not.
Achilles tears are some of the most devastating injuries NBA players can suffer. Especially for a small guard in his mid-30s like Lillard, odds are good that he will never recover his pre-injury form, although he can certainly still be an effective player. Lillard's fellow Eastern Conference All-Stars Tyrese Haliburton and Jayson Tatum also tore Achilles tendons during the playoffs, and similarly seem likely to miss most or all of next season — although both are significantly younger and bigger.