Interim head coach Tiago Splitter set the record straight that Damian Lillard will not play for the Blazers this 2025-26 season and even in the upcoming NBA Playoffs against the Spurs.
Credit: Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images North America/Getty Images via AFP – Scanpix
The Portland Trail Blazers’ inspirational season has taken another gigantic step last Tuesday after the promising group dismantled the Phoenix Suns with a stunning 114- 110 victory in the 2026 NBA Play-In Tournament.
By prevailing over the Suns, the Blazers stamped their ticket to the 2026 NBA Playoffs and will face the second-seeded San Antonio Spurs.
As they are in title contention picture and have a major challenge ahead of dealing with Victor Wembanyama, some people might be wondering about the possibility of Damian Lillard suiting up in the upcoming series.
In the end, Blazers interim head coach Tiago Splitter ended all speculations and made it clear that Lillard will not play this 2025-26 season and their looming seven-game clash with the Spurs.
“I don’t think so,” Splitter told reporters after the Blazers’ Friday practice in preparation for Sunday’s Game 1 in San Antonio. “He’s had his head on next season. We’ve got to be serious about it.
“Of course, we joke about it here and there, but he’s got a plan and we’re all going to follow that.”
Lillard notably sustained a torn left Achilles tendon in Game 4 of last year’s postseason for the Milwaukee Bucks against the Indiana Pacers. He was subsequently ruled out for the entire 2025-26 NBA season to fully recover.
With their franchise great supporting on the sidelines, Splitter, Deni Avdija and the Blazers can only continue their rally to potentially pull a big-time upset against the Spurs.
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