Damian Lillard had to watch every team in the entire league play a game before he made his regular season debut in Milwaukee.
Fiserv Forum was electric all game long and erupted when Lillard first touched the rock after the Bucks won the opening tip. Lillard flashed moments of brilliance throughout and proved his worth down the stretch of the game, helping the Bucks edge the 76ers in a 118-117 thriller.
Lillard finished with 39 points, eight rebounds and four assists. His 39-point performance set a franchise record for most points in a Buck debut, surpassing Terry Cummings' 34 points he posted against Michael Jordan and the Bulls in 1984.
Let's look at what went well and what could improve after Lillard's first game that mattered as a Buck.
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Grading Damian Lillard's strong first impression in Bucks debut
While it took him a quarter and a bit to look comfortable, Lillard took over in the second period while Giannis Antetokounmpo sat and watched on the bench. Lillard exploded in the frame, scoring 17 points on 4-for-7 shooting from the field and a perfect 7-for-7 from the foul line.
We even saw a vintage Lillard four-point play.
DAME 4-POINT PLAY 🔥 pic.twitter.com/8bGyL4B8W2
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) October 27, 2023
While that outburst was impressive, his fourth-quarter scoring turned the tide in the Bucks' favor and helped guide them to their first win of the season.
Lillard poured in 14 points in the final frame and sealed the deal with a classic 3-pointer. All that was missing was the wrist tap to let the NBA world know it was indeed Dame Time.
DAME CALLED GAME. https://t.co/ECeDl36Aem pic.twitter.com/sr8MWbz2mN
— NBA (@NBA) October 27, 2023
The fourth-period scoring is a huge immediate positive for the Bucks. Last season, Antetokounmpo was one of the better fourth-quarter scorers in the league. He finished second in scoring average in the fourth with 8.6 points per game. No other Buck finished in the top 70 players eligible to be ranked.
Lillard's 14 points may not be an every-night occurrence, but he has been one of the better last-frame performers in the league over the last couple of seasons, including averaging 8.0 points per game in the fourth last year, which was good for fourth overall in the league.
Another area where Lillard's impact was immediately felt was his ability to take pressure off of Antetokounmpo having to initiate the offense. Last season, Antetokounmpo led the NBA in usage rate at 38.8 percent, according to Basketball Reference. No other Buck had a usage rate above 30 percent. It led to an over-reliance on the Greek Freak on the offensive end.
On Thursday night, Lillard finished with a usage rate of 30.3 percent, according to PBP Stats. Having someone else who can get Milwaukee good offensive possessions will make for a more balanced offense and could lighten Antetokounmpo's load over the course of a season and deep playoff run.
Defensively, it'll be a work in progress as teams will likely look to attack Lillard even if the Bucks try to hide him. That will be more of a playoff problem than a regular season one, but Milwaukee will have to address it at some point.
All in all, Lillard showed why the Bucks took the risk and traded for him. At least on night one, he rewarded all the decision-makers with a home win and gave the fans a lot of hope.
Damian Lillard debut grade: A