Bucks' Damian Lillard Links Up With Jayson Tatum Amid Achilles Recovery

The Milwaukee Bucks had the worst possible end to their season. Not only were they eliminated from the first round in the playoffs by the Indiana Pacers for the second straight year, but they also lost Damian Lillard to injury.

Lillard tore his Achilles against the Pacers and will now miss most of, if not all, of next season. It also means that Giannis Antetokounmpo might not want to come back to Milwaukee.

For the first time in his career, he is open to asking for a trade. The injury to Lillard has definitely influenced what Antetokounmpo wants to do.

Lillard isn't the only superstar to suffer a torn Achilles in the playoffs. Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum also tore his Achilles in the second round against the Knicks.

The two superstars met up to give each other some encouragement as they both try to recover from the same injury as much as possible.

Jayson Tatum shared a post from Bucks star Damian Lilllard, as both are currently recovering from an Achilles injury:

“My dawg,” Tatum wrote.

(Via @jaytatum0 & @Dame_Lillard on IG) pic.twitter.com/PHAbRQaOaC
— Daniel Donabedian (@danield1214) May 27, 2025

Both of these players understand what it means to be the best players on a great team. Lillard was the best player for years in Portland, and Tatum continues to be the best player for the Celtics.

These two players know exactly what the other is going through. It's nice for them to meet and encourage each other during a tough time in their careers.

Lillard's career is much closer to being over than Tatum's is. He's 35 years old already, so this injury is much scarier for a player of his physical stature and his age.

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Milwaukee is going to struggle to compete for a title without Lillard, even if Antetokounmpo returns. They likely will still make the playoffs because the East is so bad, but anything after that is just gravy.

Lillard will get paid a lot of money to recover from his injury next season. His contract is what makes this injury so tough to deal with, aside from him not playing games.

This past season, Lillard averaged 24.9 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 7.1 assists per game. He shot 44.8 percent from the field and 37.6 percent from three.

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