Change is a part of life, and new Milwaukee Bucks’ guard Damian Lillard is experiencing it. According to reports, the seven-time All-Star has filed for divorce from his college sweetheart Kay’La Lillard citing “irreconcilable differences.” The filing occurred five days after he was traded from the Portland Trail Blazers.
College Sweethearts
The couple met at Weber State University in Utah and were married in September 2021 in Santa Barbara, California. They share three young children together.
Notes in the divorce filing suggest that Kay’La Lillard moved into a $2.7 million home in West Linn, Oregon, in December 2022. Damian moved in September of this year to a home in Tualatin, Oregon.
Damian Lillard will of course be somewhere in Wisconsin during the NBA season.
No matter the situation, a divorce is difficult. We don’t know if it will be contentious or how things will ultimately shake out, but this will be a challenge for Dame to deal with during a very important basketball season.
Bucks Have A Chance
On the floor, for the first time in his career, Dame is playing for a team other than the Blazers. While he has a chance to compete for a title for the first time, it will be a bit of an adjustment.
“It is definitely different,” Lillard told Andscape at Bucks media day. “I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t different. But it doesn’t feel out of place. Over the course of my career, I’ve always thought if I was ever somewhere else I would feel like I was out of place or weird about it. And it feels proper. It feels like this is what it’s supposed to be.”
On paper, Lillard and two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo are a formidable duo and will be tough to stop in the postseason.
“They’re not gonna allow [Giannis] to come downhill and just dunk every time… Which one are you gonna do?” Lillard asked rhetorically during training camp this week. “Are you gonna clog up the paint or are you gonna allow me to make 9 threes?”
The Bucks still have questions. How healthy is Khris Middleton, and is he ready to be the player he was when the team won the title in 2021? Can they expect another elite season from 35-year-old center Brook Lopez? How good is the bench? How will rookie head coach Adrian Griffin handle championship expectations?
Still, good problems to have. For Lillard it’s better to be on a team asking these questions than on a rebuilding squad at this stage of his career.
